Deception
by terracannon876
Summary: One day, out of the blue, Natsume Takashi disappeared, leaving Madara with only questions of "Why?" and "How?" Those aren't the only questions, though, as Natsume, without his memories, comes to realize that he's not as human as he'd thought.
1. N: Day 1, Lost

One day, my friend introduced me to _Natsume Yuujinchou_, and that was the end of me. _NY_ is an anime that brought me back to why I had started loving anime in the first place; I'd completely forgotten. That same reason was also one of the main inspirations behind my original story, and now that I've remembered it, I feel like I owe _NY_ something. This fic has been broiling around in my head for a while, and I just wrote a short beginning.

Others who have read my previous fics may find a certain pattern behind my writings, especially in terms of theme. What can I say? I like "what-if"s and animals :)

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

He opened his eyes blearily.

_Where am I?_

The air seemed to be cloaked in a stuffy gray, the clouds casting a shadow over all that lay beneath their dominion. A slight chill stole through him, as a breeze weaved its way through the branches of the naked trees and slid past him. There was no grass to shield him; the ground beneath him was hard and bare. If he curled his fingers, the soft dirt sifted apart easily as down.

He breathed. The cool air rejuvenated him slightly. He blinked.

"-awake!"

"He's awake!"

There were voices. Voices not far off, but he couldn't see whom they belonged to.

"-sama! Thank goodness!"

A sudden cold pressed against his hand, his chest, and he gasped. The sensation fled immediately, but the heat did not return immediately.

_Where am I?_

He tried to move his lips, but it took all his effort to simply expand and compress his chest, forcing his aching lungs to move.

"Don't move, someone's coming. We just sent someone off to get help."

The assurances fell on his ears, but they sounded like they were filtered through a sea of cotton. Muffled, barely incomprehensible.

He could only lie there. Breathe in, breathe out. He tried to move his leg, and a pain shot through his spine. He grit his teeth, but didn't stop.

"Ah! …P-please stop moving, —-sama! You shouldn't get up!"

Eyes screwed shut, he forced his reluctant limbs to shift, to bend, to support him as he flipped himself around. He sat back onto his haunches. Deep breaths, one, two, and another. It helped ease the spike through his back some.

Again, he opened his eyes. Right below him, his hands stretched before him, clenched in the dirt. They shifted pink to brown, and back to pink again. He screwed his eyes shut and opened them five seconds later. The hands stayed pink.

He was hallucinating.

"—-sama…?"

He looked up. Finally, he saw who the voices belonged to. Standing closest was a small round thing. A tanuki? His round eye rings only emphasized the large eyes on the fairly small head, all scrunched up in worry. His small paws twiddled before his stocky belly as he shifted from one paw to another.

Tanuki. There was something important there, something that he was forgetting.

He remembered what it was when he looked past the raccoon dog. There stood creatures, people, half-human half-monster things of all shapes and sizes. Some were tall, others small. Some had enormous, misshapen heads, others long spindly limbs that curled around their torsos.

Spirits, that's what they were called.

All of the spirits were looking at him intently.

Was he still hallucinating? No, these were real, more real to him than anything except for the pain.

He wasn't a spirit. He was a human. But he could see spirits.

But despite what he remembered, he couldn't grasp the most fundamental thing, the most basic aspect of his identity.

He looked down at the tanuki that still fidgeted before him. The poor thing jumped and practically collapsed upon himself at the attention. Why?

He opened his mouth, and for the first time since he woke up, his voice rolled from his throat in a dry husk.

"Who am I?"


	2. M: Day 6, Searching

**Chapter 2**

"Natsume still has not returned, has he?"

The soft _fwhump_ of footsteps stopped for a moment as hazel eyes shifted over to the purple-haired female resting on the window. "Hinoe." That was the only acknowledgement Madara gave.

"It's been a week."

"Has it? I hadn't noticed," said the spirit, although his continued pacing belied his anxiety. The words weren't coated in their usual wry tone.

Hinoe reached into her long sleeves and removed her favorite pipe. "You're a horrible liar. It's like it's his form itself that makes it impossible for you to lie."

Madara ignored the female spirit.

"Are you going again today?" A soft exhale as the sting of the smoke reached his sensitive nostrils.

"Once it's dark."

"It's very likely he's dead."

He wasn't even aware of it, but when he relaxed a second later, he realized he had been fighting a grimace. "I don't believe that's happened yet," was all he said.

"And what if he is? Do you plan on wearing his form for the rest of a human lifetime, pretending to be him? What happened to taking the Yuujinchou?"

Madara chose to bypass the first question. His mind didn't want to quite wrap around the possibility yet, ephemeral as a human life was. "I will get the book fair and square. I won't do it by stealing it from him while he's still alive."

This was a lie. The book was gone, but to those whose names were still in its pages, this was as close to a death sentence as possible. Madara would keep quiet about it for now.

"Because you're the only one who can kill him?" Hinoe snorted elegantly, if such a thing were possible. "Fool, you've grown far too attached."

Natsume Takashi's face twisted into a sneer rarely seen on the actual person. "And so have you, if you're here asking me these questions. Go off and bother those high school girls you're so fond of."

"You're losing your touch, dear Madara. You didn't even deny it." She stood, her purple-flowered kimono trailing behind her, ignoring his sputters of outrage at the casual use of his name. "You owe nothing to the human family. They are humans, and we are spirits. Just remember that." With those words, she leapt from the sill and disappeared out of sight.

The great spirit sighed and scratched his head. Hinoe had been visiting on and off, as well as a few of the other demons the fool Natsume had befriended. All of them had been worried about the boy's disappearance, despite any attempts to hide or deny it. Of course, out of all of them, he himself was the most surprised and shocked when Natsume didn't return one night despite a promised dinner with the family. The idiot had always held those in high importance, but in the end his absence went unexplained.

The next day, he still had not returned, and even Madara was starting to worry. And then the next day rolled around, and Madara knew something was very wrong.

To ease the Fujiwaras' worry, the spirit had even started to take on Natsume Takashi's form, posing as him during the day while scouring far and wide at night. It was to no avail, however, for the original was nowhere to be found.

The room remained much the same state it had been since Natsume had last been there. Almost all of the boy's possessions remained untouched, as Madara had no intention of disturbing his effects. Summer homework still lay in his bag, and papers were still spilled over the desk from his last-minute attempts to rush an assignment. "Vacation is short," he had said, "so I need to take all the time I can."

The sun bled red in the horizon. He'd already had dinner, which was an unusually quiet affair. Madara spoke as little as possible, for fear of betraying his identity as not-Takashi. That meant that normally, Natsume would be holed up in his room, and the foster parents wouldn't disturb him.

A little more time passed, and the crimson melted into a puddle over the houses. Dark blue, bordering on black, crept closer into view. It wasn't just the night, but a thick blanket of invading clouds as well. It was going to rain later that day.

It was already late enough. He didn't have to wait any longer.

Madara, the dog spirit companion to a stupid human who could never keep himself out of trouble, stepped onto the window sill in a human boy's body before leaping into the air. A white beast sprang into the blotchy sky, dashing high, up and away, with his long wispy tail flitting behind him as he continued his fruitless search.


	3. N: Day 2, Coerced into the Unknown

I've made a small change to Chapter 2. It's not really worth rereading, since the change is pretty minor (an added paragraph), but I have a feeling you'll be rereading the chapters eventually anyways, to keep the timeline straight.

Also, I've changed the chapter titles to create a timeline. The two sides of the story are in chronological order, but only with that side. In other words, Natsume's POV will be moving at a different pace than Madara's. Look at the titles for more details.

Enjoy the chapters!

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><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

After he'd uttered his question, the spirits suddenly converged on each other, humming whispers to each other, the contents of which he could only guess at. All he knew was that it was about him.

"I am very sorry," one of them said, upon returning. This one had a small head, but his limbs more than made up for it. His mask was a pasty white, and his body was a murky black. "When we found you, you were already there on the ground."

"Yes," another chirped in. This one looked like an old man in a kimono, but his mask, perpetually in a smile, belied his spirit origins. "Something was flying over and you fell. We saw, and we came."

"Oh, but I'm glad we did!" cried a woman with long hair that seemed to swirl around her body, "You are a strong one. You're much stronger than any of us here. We don't know your name, but we have been having much trouble lately. Will you help us?"

Somehow, those were just the words to tug at his attention. It was fishy, it was odd, and he hurt everywhere, but… "What is it?"

It was the tanuki's turn to talk. He clapped his front paws together in joy, or perhaps just to dissipate some of the nervous energy. "Humans! Horrible, dangerous humans! Oh, please, you have to do something to protect us!"

Humans? "But I'm a human myself."

The spirits all looked at each other, but then they seemed to come to another accordance silently and turned back to him. One spoke up. "The humans have been coming down to this forest and purifying us, entire clans at a time. We managed to erect a barrier that hides our auras, but they're close, so close. We are all that is left, and we are not very strong at all. Will you be willing to protect us?"

They were awfully persistent, and he could sense their urgency, but… "But I can't do anything! You should try to find someone more powerful."

"Ah, but you don't know that, do you?"

"Huh?"

A spirit with a boar's head raised a hoof, as though to try and illustrate his point in midair. "You do not even know your name. It stands to reason that you do not know your abilities as well as you think."

He conceded. The demon had a point.

A smile pulled at the spirit's face, sliding back around the tusks protruding from his mouth. "We believe you have the ability. All you need to do is learn."

"Oh, oh, I can teach him!" said the tanuki, raising his paw. "I'm really good with that stuff!"

"W-wait, but I haven't even-"

"Thank you so much! We will be safe now! Thank you!"

"Thank you!"

"We will have to hurry with preparations, but I believe you will exceed all our, and your, expectations," said the boar demon. He wasn't sure he liked the glint in the spirit's eyes, but it was already too late to voice a protest.

The chorus of cheers rang through the air, and he soon found himself surrounded by jubilant spirits and lifted into the air. Relief truly seemed to radiate from them just to have someone on their side, and their joy seeped into him such that he could even forget his pain, if only for a moment.

He wasn't too sure what he had gotten himself into, but if he could help them, perhaps they could help him, somehow. Hopefully it would provide clues onto who he was, and maybe he could find a way home.


	4. M: Day 7, Assistance

**Chapter 4**

There was no progress. He was tired of the pointless home life, the pointless dinners, the pointless waiting. There was a void, and the absence was clawing at his being like an itched that lay just below the neck, right where he couldn't scratch.

The searches were fruitless. None, not even a shred of clothing or a strand of hair. It was as though he had vanished off Japan, and Madara was not sure what he thought of that.

It had been a week. He was at his wit's end. He practically started a nervous habit of clawing at Natsume's furniture to relieve some stress. The only thing holding him back from doing that was the fact that human nails were not ideal for gouging grooves in wood. With a deep breath, he picked himself up and stepped out of the room.

"Oh, Takashi-kun! Are you feeling better?"

Adopting a somewhat meek manner was easy around the Fujiwara couple. Perhaps that was why they hadn't questioned him much. Sure, Madara could sense their occasional doubt, but for people who didn't believe in the supernatural, the "your son isn't really your son" conclusion was a bit far-fetched. Either way, it was no wonder that fool Natsume acted like he did – although he was just as much of a wimp out elsewhere too. "Yes, much better."

It always felt weird to him, hearing the brat's voice come from his lips. Even if it were a borrowed form, and even if he had used Reiko's form in the past, it was still an odd sensation. It was like hearing someone talk over everything you said at precisely the right moment, perfectly synced.

He reached for a rice bowl and the scoop. "Here, let me help you with that."

"That's a dear. Hm," Natsume's foster mother paused, "have you still not found NyanNyan yet?"

Madara didn't even flinch at the absurd nickname, so accustomed was he to it. "No, I've tried the entire city. I still can't find him."

"Is that so…" Despite the vague answer, he could practically smell the worry rolling off her in waves.

"Don't worry, he's tough. I'm sure he'll be back in a few weeks." Or whenever your wayward son decides to show up again on the face of the earth.

"I hope so…"

Dinner was much the usual, and though the food was as delicious as always, his mind was elsewhere. The Fujiwara's seemed to sense this and didn't press conversation onto him, for which he was grateful. He thanked them for the meal and left for Natsume's room.

It was already night; the sun had already gone into hiding. Madara practically stalked over to the window, but was immediately stopped … by a large equine face right outside the house.

"Misuzu," growled the white spirit.

"Madara," the horse demon replied. Courtesies exchanged, Misuzu continued. "You are as careless as ever."

"What do you mean?"

"Did you not think that the others would not take note of your constant coming and leaving? You are practically flaunting the fact that something is wrong, and when something is wrong with you, something is wrong with Natsume-dono." The long snout shifted to make room for a large milky white eye. It shifted from left to right, scanning the corners of the room. "I should have known, having seen you in that form. What happened to Natsume-dono?"

"As you can see, he's not here. Now if you don't mind, please move your big head so I can go look for him." Madara's hackles were raised, and Natsume's teeth were just a bit pointier than they should've been.

"And the Yuujinchou?"

Madara froze. The Yuujinchou. In all honestly, he'd forgotten. It was still missing, and he hadn't even thought to search for it. But the pause was only for a split second, and Madara narrowed his eyes in reply. "The Yuujinchou is in my hands until Natsume-dono returns. That was our promise."

Misuzu regarded Madara for a moment longer with one eye before snorting, backing away from the house. "Very well. I will do my best to search for Natsume-dono as well, for despite the fact that he is unworthy of my name, he is far worthier than you are."

The dog spirit snorted. "I don't even want your useless name. The moment the book truly belongs to me, your name will be crushed beneath my claws."

"Before that happens, you will have been smashed by my hoof." Misuzu bowed his head, in thought. "How far have you looked?"

"I've looked everywhere, practically this entire side of Japan. There's no trace of him." Madara glared. "Leave the search to me. You'll only be crowding the space with your uselessness."

"Hah! Yet you are still searching!" Misuzu started drifting backwards into the air. "I have strengths that you do not, Madara. Strength comes in numbers, even for the strong." With those words, he disappeared into the shadows.

Talking with the large spirit always put Madara in a bad mood; part of it was that the cow-face was probably correct. He had a better information network amongst the spirits in the area. He could probably find out more, and faster.

That didn't mean Madara could stop, though. With the hindrance finally out of the way, he leapt from the window and transformed into the great beast his true form was and galloped into the moon-full sky.

However, his search would be to no avail that night either.


	5. N: Day 3, Training Begins

I will be first and foremost to say, I usually don't like OCs. I will also say that, to write an adventure fic in the _Natsume Yuujinchou_ fandom, you can't not have OCs. Suffer it, bwahahaha...

Or even better, like them, lol XD

I've planned the fic out and it'll be about 26 chapters. Hopefully, you're in for a ride. This can be called the "slow" part of the fic, although things should pick up in the next pair of chapters.

On a side note, this is my only fic thus far that uses Japanese honorifics. Usually I believe in keeping those out, since if a fic is in English, then it should be in _English_ and not something in-between, but since this series is so Japanese-centric anyways... It just seemed right. "Nushi-sama" is roughly "Lord."

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

"Nushi-sama! Nushi-sama!" An excited voice pierced through the forest as the little _scritch scratch _of feet came closer.

He turned towards the tanuki and greeted him with a warm smile. "Hello, Ren. I was waiting for you. We were supposed to … ah … start our lessons today?" Names had been exchanged yesterday. He was to remain nameless, "for your own safety," they had said. "Nushi-sama" it is, for the time being.

The triangular head bobbed up and down. "Yeah! I'm the best at this, so you can count on me!"

"And just what is 'this?'" The arrangements were all so sudden, it felt like the world had only righted itself recently. One moment, he was a person without an identity, lying on the bare ground of an even barer forest, and the next he was Lord and Protector of the godforsaken piece of land. He was dressed in silk, a white and pale sakura pink kimono. Kakuyuki, the lady spirit with the long hair, said that the color suited him. He chalked that comment up to empty flattery. He hardly thought the fine material was appropriate for training in.

"Well," Ren did that shifting thing he did when he got nervous, "I'm a tanuki, and tanuki are masters of disguises…"

"So you're here to help me disguise myself?"

"No, it's more … more about the illusion. You should be able to do it, though! Maybe not as great as I can, but Nushi-sama is strong!"

"Now you're just doing that to make me feel embarrassed." He scratched his cheek, trying to remember why the boy's personality seemed so familiar. It was as though it were from an old dream.

Everything felt like it was in a dream, as though the events around him were being viewed through a film of molasses. Nothing was connected, and, most importantly, nothing was connected to him. He was just floating, letting things happen around him. It was a horribly disorienting sensation, but there was nothing to ground himself to, and so he continued drifting.

The other youkai seemed to be friendly. He could even handle being their "Lord" if that was what they really wanted. He seriously hoped nothing happened, though, because he didn't trust himself to be as great as they thought he was. He was sure to disappoint them, and with that would come danger, injuries, and possibly even death.

He didn't want to be responsible.

But he couldn't leave them alone.

Was he this bad before his memory loss?

"—-sama?"

He jumped. "Yes? Sorry, I drifted off for a second."

Ren's cheeks puffed up. "You weren't listening to a word I said!"

"No, really, I'm sorry. I must still be tired from the day before yesterday. I'm listening now."

The tension seemed to leave the small tanuki's shoulders. "Oh. Right. It was only three days ago, wasn't it?"

He nodded. "Don't worry, though. I'll do my best!" He struck what he thought was a "ready" pose.

Ren giggled. "OK, then. Here's how you do it…"

The lesson was easier than he would have thought. The concepts rested upon belief and will. That, combined with a certain kind of spiritual power that he apparently possessed, allowed others to see him as only what he wanted them to see him as. He didn't see any purpose or use for this trick, but Ren assured it would be very useful sometime.

Yes, it had only been three days, but it was a long few days, spent on the ground or in a futon. The closest thing the demons had to a lodge was a small straw-built hut that was made only to keep out the water. There wasn't even a wooden shrine nearby for shelter. It only made him appreciate his spirit companions more, since they were the only ones he'd talked to.

"Wow, you're a regular natural at this!" clapped the raccoon dog. "You sure you haven't done this before?" No sooner had he uttered those words did he clap his paws over his snout. "I'm sorry, Nushi-sama! I didn't-"

He shook his head. "It's all right. I don't remember. But what matters is that I can do it now, right?" As he said this, he concentrated on appearing like the ugly boar demon that had hounded him the night before.

Open laughter. "Haha, that looks like him! Igari will be so mad when he sees you like that!"

Ren continued guffawing, rolling around on his large belly. It wasn't long before "Nushi-sama" broke down as well, his snorts and grunts coming through the pig snout sounding foreign to his ears, and only serving to fuel his gut-wrenching laughter more.

In his usual form, and with human hands, he wiped a tear away as the hilarity finally died down. He lifted the boy's small frame into his arms, and they both headed back to what served as a village for the spirits – the straw hut and the small clearing before it.

Everything was sparse, dirty, dying.

But, perhaps … perhaps it wouldn't be so bad staying here for just a while longer.

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><p>For those who care, Ren's kanji is "蓮".<p>

Please review!


	6. M: Day 8, Rousing Suspicion

**Chapter 6**

Madara rolled around, spending some precious time in his maneneko form. Gods, how he missed this. He never would have thought it possible, but being able to just roll 'round and 'round was a blessed gift. He could do it forever.

He was restless and tired at the same time. He was allowed a little break.

For the umpteenth time that day, that morning whose sun had risen only an hour ago, he cursed the fool Natsume for wandering off on his own. Probably got snatched up by something too. Probably when the idiot was helping it get its foot out of a ditch or something. That seemed just like what he would do, too, and that was the most infuriating part.

He screamed into the pillow. It still didn't ease his frustrations.

He was just about to pull out his claws when there was the sound of chimes ringing through the house. Grudgingly, he sheathed the sharp points for a later time. With a great puff smoke, he was standing as Natsume Takashi again.

Or, more precisely, he was lying curled up in a ball under his blanket because he refused to crawl out. The houseguests probably weren't for Natsume anyways.

Unfortunately, his hopes were dashed by a few soft raps on the screen door. "Takashi-kun? Are you up?"

Repressing a sigh as best he could, Madara sat up. "Yes?"

"Your friends are here to see you. Atsushi-kun and Satoru-kun, I believe?"

Kitamoto Atsushi and Nishimura Satoru. The spirit hardly knew them, despite the many times he'd accompanied Natsume in his frolicking. He did know, though, he didn't have the energy to bother with their antics today. Screw stupid Natsume and his reputation. "Tell them I'm asleep."

"…Takashi-kun, are you feeling all right? You're not sick, are you?"

Madara appreciated that, despite the conspicuous worry in the older woman's voice, she still hadn't barged in to check on her "foster son." It wasn't everyday you found a human with a notion of propriety and privacy. "No, Touko-san. I'm just a little tired from yesterday."

"You did search all night for that poor cat… I wonder where he is now?"

Madara grumbled. "Probably enjoying a buffet of sardines."

That managed to bring a giggle to Touko's voice. "Sleep well, then. I'll tell them you don't feel well."

Her footsteps softened as she walked down the hall, away from the door. Madara gave a sigh of relief. What he'd said was the truth – he was tired. Tired of yesterday night, of the past week in general.

His options were growing limited. Where else could the fool be?

There were some protests – Madara could hear through the floorboards – but it was soon quieted.

After what only seemed like a few minutes, the same footsteps from before approached. Madara didn't even bother tensing this time.

"Takashi-kun? Dear?" She continued without waiting for an affirmative. "I'm going to go out and get some groceries. I wanted to cook calamari today, but I forgot to get some of the ingredients. Would you like to come?"

As tempting as that sounded, he wasn't feeling the hunger. (There was definitely something wrong with him. Damn Natsume, he would pay for any mental and physical damage caused by the stress, once he found him!) "No, I think I'm going to sleep a bit more. Thank you for asking."

"Have a good rest, then," were Touko's words as she disappeared down the hall again.

Time passed differently for spirits. What seemed like minutes to them would probably feel like hours to humans, and thus to Madara, it felt like he had just closed his eyes when the doorbell rang again.

Madara cursed, darkly and creatively, before rolling over and stuffing his ears with his pillow. Just when he thought the infernal noise had stopped, it came again. "What is it this time…" he grumbled, voice so muffled he could barely understand himself. He made his mind to ignore the chimes, but after two sets, the bells didn't stop.

They kept ringing, and ringing, and ringing…

Madara threw off the covers and stomped out into the hall, down the stairs, and to the front door. He threw open the door, his best glower in place.

"Natsume…?"

"Natsume-kun!"

His eyes widened. He immediately slammed the door behind him again.

Of all the people to come visit him, at this point in time, these two were the worst. Not because of their personalities or anything like that, but simply because they knew more. And, it was slight, but they had some spiritual sense.

There was a quiet knock on the door. "Natsume, are you OK?" That was the Tanuma brat, the one always sticking his head into other's business.

"You're not sick, are you?" The Taki girl was with him too, the one whom all the nearby spirits superstitiously avoided.

Madara faked a cough. "Uhm, sorry guys, I'm not feeling too well. I don't want to give it to you, so I'll have to refuse whatever it is you came for."

"We were just wondering if you wanted to come with us by the riverside, but if you're sick…"

"Yes, very sick," Madara interjected.

"Do you need any help around the house? Do you have medicine? Do you-"

"I'm fine, Taki. Touko-san already took care of everything."

"Oh… We'll come by tomorrow, then?"

That wasn't much better, but it was a day, at least. "Thanks for coming by guys."

"It's no problem. Hope you get better!" the girl said.

Oddly enough, Tanuma was silent. Madara heard from across the door, "What are you doing? Come on, let's go!" and the sounds of scuffling. After a few seconds, the boy seemed to give up and his presence disappeared from the front yard as well.

The spirit slid down the door, leaning against it in exhaustion. "How does Natsume do this nice act every day, 24/7? This is even more tiring than swearing off sake…"

Little did he know that that would not be the last of his troubles that day.


	7. N: Day 4, History Lesson

The next Natsume chapter should pick up a bit. Sorry for the slow pacing =P

Please leave a comment if things get too confusing?

Kousetsu's kanji is "煌雪". Rinne's is "林音". I have little doodles of these guys in my notes. My art shall forever be inferior to Midorikawa's XD

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><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

Kousetsu was already waiting on the fields by the time he climbed through the forest. "I'm sorry I'm late."

The old man spirit, back hunched as he leaned on his cane, shook his hand in a placatory gesture. "Do not worry, Nushi-sama. We may be tight on time, but this will not take you all the time, if what little Ren told me is the truth."

He must have looked confused because Kousetsu continued, "He tells me you have a natural ability for spells. This is mostly likely a result of your large spiritual reserves."

The way the elderly spirit was talking about this seemed like it was all predetermined fact. "Is that why you chose me?" he asked.

Kousetsu chuckled. "Dear Nushi-sama, did you think you were run-in-the-mill? Such humility is pleasing to old men like me, but you should be more self-conscious."

Now that the spirit mentioned it, though, he did remember something on this. It was because of this spiritual power that he could see the monsters in the first place. He supposed he must have been a fairly odd boy, meeting and talking to beings that no one else could have seen. "But I could have been someone aiming to destroy all of you. Humans exorcise demons, usually, don't they?"

He felt Kousetsu's gaze rest on him longer than necessary, and he had to consciously stop himself from shuffling nervously. The spirit soon picked up the implicit question, though. "Rinne is good at listening to the hearts of other beings. He had already known you were good to the core of your essence by the time you entered the forest canopy."

He looked away. It was embarrassing to be talked about in this manner. There was more important information concealed within that statement anyways. "So you saw how I got here?" If he remembered correctly, during the brief introductions two days ago, Rinne was the long-limbed spirit who didn't talk much – or at all, seeing as how Ren had handled his introductions. He was supposedly the spirit of one of the older trees, so it was possible he could have seen something.

"Yes. To be frank, it was quite difficult to miss. You were being carried by rather large demon across the skies. When you had flown over the forest, you woke up and struck the spirit. He loosened his grip on you then, and you fell."

A large demon? He closed his eyes, trying to imagine the scenario (since trying to remember it was fruitless; it wasn't like he hadn't tried before). He remembered the aches on his body and felt the phantom pain along his legs and torso. Teeth marks? The spirit must have had him in his jaws when he punched him … probably in the eye, knowing himself.

He put a hand over where he still felt blunt molars digging into his chest. "I'm not very good at thinking ahead, am I?"

"Hm?"

"Otherwise I would have found some way that didn't involve falling from midair and hitting my head on the ground."

Kousetsu threw back his head and guffawed. "Nushi-sama, I do not believe you had a choice, but whatever the circumstances, we are grateful you have come to us."

He paused, trying to think of how to word his question properly. It was rare for these spirits to be this forward with information, so he was willing to take what he could get when he could get it. "You mentioned humans, on the first day. That was why you said you needed me."

"You are correct." Kousetsu looked up towards the sky, contemplative. "Long ago, humans and spirits lived in harmony." Catching sight of his skeptical look, the spirit chuckled. "That is to say, they completely ignored each other. However, with modern times, the forests have diminished, and we no longer have the option of keeping to ourselves."

"What happened?" he prompted, when the elderly spirit seemed to have no intention of continuing.

"Oh, the usual mischief young ones are always up to," Kousetsu replied dismissively. "However, it attracted the attention of quite a few exorcists. Now, all you see are those that are left." The spirit acted like it was all in the past, water under the bridge, but to his eyes, it seemed like it was a fresh wound. He was practically bleeding regret and bitterness. "I managed to erect a barrier that would hide all spiritual aura from outside eyes, but it will not work against any who enter, and by then it was already too late."

He fell silent. There was no way he would be able to comprehend their pain; even if he had any memories, he was certain that nothing like this had happened to him. In a vague way, he supposed they were like a family, closely knit out of necessity and friendship, rather than any sort of kinship, and the loss of any would have been devastating, let alone the majority of the group. The only thing he could do was to listen and lend his strength.

His sadness must have shown on his face because the next moment, Kousetsu clapped his hands, causing him to jump. "Now then, enough idle chit-chat! I am here to give you a lesson, and so a lesson I will give!"

Staring at the sudden change in the spirit's attitude, he brought himself to attention.

"Today, you shall learn about charms and runes…"


	8. T: Day 8, Gift from Above

And now, for a change in pace?

I can't for the life of me remember if Fujiwara Touko has ever met Tanuma. I'm going to assume she has here.

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><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

It was true he didn't have the spiritual power. Kaname knew this, was reminded of it every day by lingering shadows and shapes that were almost there, but never quite. He saw reflections and wisps, but never solid shapes. In a way, he was grateful – he didn't have things nearly as tough as Natsume did. He'd never asked exactly what had happened in Natsume's childhood, but just the understanding look he had been privy to that first day they talked… That was enough.

On the other hand, though, it was like getting a taste of the grapes and then having them forever held out of reach.

It was enough that Natsume was his friend. It was wonderful that he could hear the stories and the descriptions behind everything he almost saw, almost witnessed. It was thrilling, a dream come true.

And now, something had happened to him, and Kaname didn't know where to start.

Despite their friendship, their shared troubles, both of them were too accustomed to hiding behind blinded shutters. Natsume lied before his mind could catch up with his mouth, and then he'd apologize and retract his falsehood and replace it with a half-concealed truth. Kaname would quiet, withdrawing into his mind until the conversation was dropped. They were on the same road, but always passing each other. As such, it was rare for one of them to actively bring the other his troubles.

But then again, this trouble had to do with Natsume, right? It wouldn't hurt for Kaname to confront "him," because whoever had talked to him earlier today was most definitely **not** Natsume Takashi.

At first, when he had been approaching the house, he had a "feeling." It wasn't the "you better run ASAP" kind of feeling, but more of a "something is most definitely wrong" feeling. It was like an itch running up his spine, little rat feet scurrying up to the base of his neck, sending shivers all the way down again. Something was wrong; he had to go see.

And then Natsume had opened the door, and Kaname knew immediately that something was off. Natsume just didn't **feel** like that. It was hard to explain, but being the son of a priest on top of seeing things that didn't exist for other people had its perks. He knew there were some things that couldn't easily be explained, and the fact that some people just felt one way was one of them.

He knew his intuition was spot-on when the door slammed shut in his face immediately after.

He'd allowed Taki to drag him away earlier that day, but this sort of thing had to be handled – or else something would go wrong, right? He had to be the active one because Natsume wasn't around to help him – because Natsume was the one in trouble this time.

Pausing only to gather his nerves, he slowly raised a hand to the doorbell.

The chimes rang through the house.

There were footsteps, and then a _shudder_ as the door slid open. "Oh, hello Kaname-kun. How can I help you? Would you like me to get Takashi-kun?"

Kaname nodded. He didn't think he'd be able to do anything else.

She turned, leaving the door open. ("Come on in! Help yourself.") Kaname took the invitation, sliding the door shut behind him.

The not-Natsume appeared before him by the time he looked up again. His eyes were narrowed distastefully, and despite the fact that Kaname was taller, he had the distinct feeling of a mouse being stared down by a cat.

Not-Natsume sighed, and Kaname's muscles felt like they worked again. He opened his mouth.

The two spoke at the same time.

"Yes, Tanuma?" "You're not Natsume."

Silence stretched between them, and Kaname glared at the imposter, who looked shocked.

"What are you talking about? Of course I'm-"

Kaname shook his head. "You don't feel like him. You're not him."

This time, whoever-it-was didn't talk back. He instead grabbed Kaname by the arm and dragged him outside. "Touko-san, Tanuma needs some help, so I'm going to go over to his house and probably spend the night there."

"OK, be careful!" came Fujiwara-san's voice from the kitchen.

(Oh god, he was going to be murdered in the streets.)

They didn't walk too far; really, they only stopped in the front yard, under the large tree that hung over the gate, but in that small distance Kaname knew that this Natsume's grip was going to cause bruises later on.

He abruptly stopped, and Kaname almost crashed into him. For a while, there was silence except for the chirping of cicadas.

"I've always told that idiot Natsume," not-Natsume broke the thin veneer of peace, "that being friends with you was going to end up being more trouble than it was worth."

The voice was familiar, and so was the tone, but they didn't belong to the same person. He knew this style of speaking. "You're … Ponta?"

"You're sharp for someone who's working mostly off guesswork." He'd never seen Natsume look so bored in all the time he's known him. "I suppose it comes with working off half-truths all your life."

"Where is Natsume?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't be here playing house."

"Why aren't you looking, then?"

Ponta – now that just sounded weird in this situation – raised an eyebrow. "Think about that question for a second, and then get back to me."

Because Ponta didn't want the Fujiwara's to worry that Natsume was missing? If he'd searched, though, then that meant that even he couldn't find his friend. Despite the fact that he'd never seen the chubby cat's true form, Kaname knew the spirit was powerful.

Whatever had happened to Natsume, he was in more trouble than usual. It was a long shot, but two bodies were better than one.

"Let me help."

"No."

He didn't expect to be rejected so quickly. "Why? You could search by … by air, and I could see what I could find-"

Natsume's lips pulled back in a growl. He could almost see canines. "You'll what, trip over 'invisible' spirits that you can't see? Meddle with things you can see, kid. It will save me trouble, and it will save your skin. " He turned away and started walking to the gate. "I have my hands full. Don't expect me to be save you from the bellies of some hungry demon. I have my own priorities."

Kaname blinked, and then there was a burst of wind. By the time he lowered his arms shielding his face, Ponta was gone.

He swore – it was one of the rare occasions he allowed himself to do so – and flopped back against the tree with a _thud_. Damn himself for being powerless. Damn himself for not being able to help his friend. Damn-

And his thoughts were interrupted by a sharp pain bursting from the top of his head.

He cried out and jumped up, turning this way and that. He hadn't really expected to see an assailant, but instincts were hard to stop.

He was surprised to find the culprit on the ground, at his feet.

It was a book. Not a library book, or even a modern book, but one of the older ones with spines bound with string. The cover was a deep, forest, and the patterned spine was gold.

He picked it up and flipped through the pages. There were strange scribbles on each page, written in scrawling calligraphy. He was reminded of flowers and rivers, mountains and forests, all in a single brushstroke.

What a strange book, but there was something about it that prevented him from bringing it into the Fujiwara house.

It felt kind of like Natsume.

The front flopped down, billowing out a puff of dust, pollen, sticks and leaves from between the boards. There were kanji, elegant and beautiful, spelling out an innocent-sounding name down the cover.

"Yuujinchou."

The Book of Friends.


	9. N: Day 8, Incentive

My chapters are slowly getting longer, lol. I guess that's just the nature of action chapters.

The gap of time between the two POVs are getting closer.

If there's any big issue in characterization that you feel needs to be pointed out, please drop a message!

Kakuyuki is "鶴" and Igari is "猪苅", and that should cover all the OCs.

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><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

In his dreams, he saw many different spirits, of many different shapes, of a variety unfound of in his group of current companions. There were kappa and cows, ogres and horses, mermaids, giant birds, and, most common of all, humanoids. None of them felt very familiar, but they all embraced him in a blanket of warmth. He wondered why.

He was human. Humans and spirits didn't get along, as a general rule. Was he so different because he could see them? No, he wasn't on good terms on spirits either. If those were memories, then spirits brought along jeers and thrown rocks, as well threats and gaping maws.

Perhaps they were more alike than they thought. Humans and spirits both were selfish, and both believed what they wanted to believe.

These with him right now were friendly enough, but he knew that it was only because he was lending them a hand. They were "friends" in the most tenuous sense. No, perhaps less, because they had set him on a (undeserved) pedestal and called him "Lord."

How selfish was he, then, for wanting to be with them, help them, despite his definite inability to do so? He was human; he had no special abilities other than to see. A demon could just open his mouth and bite down, and he'd be a goner.

Yes, he was human, he thought as he clenched his fist tight.

"Nushi-sama!"

The voice pierced through his musings and couldn't help but gasp as he was ripped from his thoughts. He looked up. There, in the distance, came tumbling Ren.

"!"

He caught the rolling tanuki as he flew into his arms. "Calm down! What happened?"

"Th-th-there, K-Kakuy-yuki, atta-ttacked," Ren sniffed around his stutters, "H-help her! P-p-please!"

He put the sobbing raccoon dog down slowly and pat him once on the head in reassurance before dashing off in the direction Ren had pointed.

No, he wasn't really friends with them, but they depended on him for some unfathomable reason, so he had to try.

He ran as fast as he could, ground soaring beneath him. Legs retracted and stretched, and he lost track of time as he weaved over the stony hills and through the gnarled woods. His feet beat out a steady rhythm as he leapt forward; he was sure to feel the exhaustion later, but right now his heart beat in his ears and his throat. After far too long, he saw two figures.

They were moving in a clearing past the road – the unofficial boundary between human and spirit, but now was not the time to care about that. The larger figure was in front, fleeing clumsily as another winged being tore at its long hair, ripping it out in handfuls.

In a half-rage, half-panic moment, he jumped as hard as he could towards the two…

…

…and found that he was flying straight for them. He gave a small cry in shock, but now was definitely not the time to be surprised. If he could do it, all the better, and no sooner had he landed did he strike out with his fist at the bird man.

The bird (he briefly wondered what species) gave a shriek as he extricated himself, the wings on his back flapping desperately. No sooner than he had escaped into the air, though, did he come diving down, claws outstretched.

He reached into his pocket (he would have to apologize later; the robe was absolutely ruined) and pulled out one of the charms he'd made earlier that day on a whim. Kousetsu couldn't make it directly for him, but the spirit had his new pupil practice drawing them all day a few days ago.

By now, he was pretty good at making exorcism charms.

He wrapped the seemingly harmless paper around his knuckle and waited for the bird to approach. He thought he heard a snort, but dismissed the sound. The bird was approaching closer, and closer.

And then he was within arm's length, and he **swung**.

He didn't know what registered first, the thud of the body, the crack, or the soul-piercing scream that left the bird man's lips. It rent through the air, and it took all of his stubbornness to keep from squinting his eyes shut. He was already clapping his hands over his ears as hard as possible.

By the time he felt the air still and the world stopped spinning, the bird was in the sky, out of reach and cradling an arm that had an extra joint, bent the wrong way. The spirit wouldn't make it very far; he'd have to land and rest to cope with the pain.

He turned his attention to Kakuyuki, but when he looked, he found she had disappeared from sight. "Kakuyuki?" he called out. She wasn't anywhere in sight. He turned, stumbling a bit. A nearby rice field was completely destroyed, probably from the impact of the bird's body on the patty when he'd punched him.

"Nushi-sama!" came a distant answer. He turned to follow the voice, but it sounded far. Was there something wrong with his hearing? He lifted a hand to his ear and it came away a bit red.

"Nushi-sama!" This time, she was nearer. Before he knew it, she was standing right before him. He strained his ears to hear her words. "Are you OK? Please answer me! Igari will have my head and my beautiful hair if he found out you died!"

"I'm standing right here, Kakuyuki-san. I'm not dead." His own voice sounded like it was being drowned out by an ocean.

"Good. That's good. That's very good. Come on, let's get out of the fields." The spirit reached for his hand and pulled, but after two steps, he faltered and had to stop. She looked back. "What's wrong? Are you injured?"

"No, it's nothing. I think one of my eardrums burst or something." He reached to touch both ears. Indeed, only one hand came away wet.

"Eeek! Blood!" screamed Kakuyuki, completely oblivious to his flinch, "Nushi-sama is injured! I must get help! I must go back for help!" Before he could react, the hysterical spirit swept him over her shoulder and started a mad dash back to the forest.

He stopped struggling long before they reached the forest that was their home. All resistance was futile; her iron grip just got tighter and tighter.

"Hmm," observed Kousetsu, looking carefully in his ear after he had been hauled the entire dizzy ride back, "I cannot say for sure, but this does not seem to be a deep wound. It should heal in a day, at worst. I daresay the process has already started."

"Then Nushi-sama will be all right?" asked Ren.

He reached out and pet the tanuki in response. "A day? That's … really quick."

"We are speaking of someone with your level of spiritual power. You'll heal faster than humans."

He frowned. "You mean, 'other humans.'"

Before Koustesu could respond, however, the boar demon cut in. "You should not have been injured at all, Nushi-sama. That was a low-level crow. You should have killed it in the first blow."

"I won't kill when I don't have to," he growled. He hadn't talked much to Igari yet. The boar had been conspicuously out of sight and thus out of mind for the past week. The few times they did exchange words, all he'd get were offhand criticisms about whatever he was doing. All in all, this particular spirit was an unpleasant fellow that he tried to avoid as much as possible because he had nothing good to say, if at all.

"Your fighting technique is horrible, too obvious. You couldn't aim to kill if you tried."

"I wasn't trying."

"And instead you decide to come back to us injured. If you are having trouble at this level, Nushi-sama, it was wrong to appoint you this position." With those words, Igari turned and swept away.

Silence followed his departure.

"Don't worry, I think you're sweet," said Kakuyuki.

"I like you too," supplied Ren. "Don't worry about Igari-sama. He's just a big meanie."

"Shouldn't you be more respectful of someone you address with 'sama?'" he joked.

"But he's a jerk and a meanie, so no. You've already shown yourself to be a great Nushi-sama by protecting us!"

"Ah, you should show your elders more respect," said Kousetsu. He then turned to him. "Thank you, Nushi-sama. Without you, Kakuyuki-san's life would have been forfeit."

"No, it was thanks to you. Your lessons really paid off."

"Nevertheless, I give you my deepest thanks for saving what is left of us." With those words, the spirit bowed, only serving to deepen his embarrassment.

These spirits weren't friends.

They were hiding something.

They were forcing him to do something he really had no business in doing.

But if he was useful to them, if he could belong here, even for a moment, then perhaps…


	10. M: Day 9, What Precedes a Fall

I think, with this chapter, there's only one character left to bring into the fic. Don't worry, he's not an OC.

I have about one episode of interaction to base Natori and Madara's interaction off of, and it's not even in a comparable emergency. In the end, here, Natori vents and Madara pouts, lol.

Thank you for reading this far, whoever you people are!

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><p><strong>Chapter 10<strong>

Madara soared through the sky, the sun shining on his ink white fur. This wasn't his typical joy ride, though. In his mouth he held a few packages, some favors he had promised the Fujiwara's. This way was just faster for transportation.

Last night had been unfruitful, yet again. He had even swallowed some of his pride and deigned to ask the local spirits, but they had all replied in negative. Misuzu had apparently ordered them to keep an eye out for Natsume, but the fool was still missing without a single sighting.

He shifted the bags that were lodged between his teeth. Living as Natsume was frustrating in all sorts of new manners. He liked the Fujiwara's – they gave good food – but they relied on Natsume entirely too much. He was running to and fro every single spare moment, and he couldn't refuse because the idiot softie wouldn't say no to anything.

Why was he doing all of this again?

He honestly didn't know.

But as a result, his searches were limited in scope; Natsume couldn't have gone far (Madara doubted he was seriously taken out of Japan), but there must have been some sort of trick to keep him from being detected. The entire situation was bizarre and so like Natsume.

Living two lives, though, on top of his fraying nerves, growing impatience, and heightened anxiety (not that he would ever admit to any of the three) was starting to make him feel strained. Stretched thin like a balloon about to pop.

If this were some elaborate prank of Natsume's, screw everything. He would be the ones to clamp his jaws shut over Natsume's dead body, Yuujinchou or not.

Yuujinchou. The book had been such a constant of his life, it was surprising (or not) how little he thought about what was supposed to be his ultimate goal for housing with the human boy. Well, he was a prideful creature, he'd admit, and it really was beneath him to just **steal** the book. At the very least, he would get Natsume back, kill him himself, and then take the book. That was more honorable.

Didn't really matter now, though, now that both book and boy were missing.

He surged forward, but just as he was about to take another step, he caught a familiar sight – a man with sunglasses and a very familiar hat.

What was Natori Shuuichi doing on this side of Japan again, and so near Natsume's house?

It seemed that just as he noticed the man, Natori had also noticed him. The exorcist looked up and waved. Madara decided to humor him and landed.

He almost chuckled at Natori's dumbfounded expression when he assumed Natsume's form. Almost, but even his mood was so down that he couldn't grunge up the humor.

"What is it?" he said gruffly after he'd removed the packages from his mouth.

The man sighed. "I'd thought my mind was playing tricks on me, but hearing you talk puts me at ease, in a way. Just what are you doing in Natsume's form, fat cat?"

Madara bristled a little. "Watch where you're directing that tongue of yours, exorcist."

"Something's happened to Natsume, hasn't it? Otherwise you wouldn't be running around looking like him." There was one thing he could hand to the exorcist; he wasn't stupid.

"Is there something you wanted with this area?"

"I had received a request. I received a request about an unexplainable phenomenon just yesterday. Many crops from a rice field were destroyed; it seemed like a fairly simple job. Though it's a bit far off, I thought Natsume might have wanted to come along, since it was on the way for me." Natori pushed his glasses up. "However, it seems that something far more important has come up."

Snorting, Madara crossed his arms. "You go on with your petty job. I'm looking for Natsume."

"And you've done such a good job finding him."

"What do you mean by that."

"Exactly what it sounds like. You haven't found him yet, and yet you're warning others from helping? Just how arrogant can you get? I had thought before that Natsume was like a buffer for you, but I didn't realize just how much."

The spirit was quite tempted to change back and stomp a foot down on Natori's stupid smirk. "I have been busy, all four paws full."

"And that brings up the question of what you're doing in his form in the first place."

"That's none of your business."

"You have your priorities mixed up – if Natsume were to worry about his foster parents worrying about him, he'd have to be here to worry about it." He paused. "Could it be … that you're that fond of him?"

There was a flash before Madara's eyes, and the next thing he knew, he had sunk his fist into Natori's jaw. The exorcist fell backwards.

"Sensitive topic, I take it?" The man rubbed at his jaw, moving it to see that it wasn't broken. Madara was almost proud that even in his moment of rage, he managed to hold back on the measly human. Luckily, Natori dropped the issue. "I'll do what I can to help; kill two birds with one stone. I'll ask around where I'm heading. I suppose you've already covered the vicinity?"

Apparently Natori took the spirit's silence for a "Yes." After he picked himself up and dusted himself off, pausing every now and then to poke at the newly formed bruise, he continued, "Before I go, one last piece of advice. The Fujiwara's will never know you lied to them if you find Natsume, but if you continue with this, at this rate Natsume will never return."

After the man left, Madara punched the gate, rocking the stone pillar and dislodging a few loose pebbles from the wall. He swore, but whether it was from anger, frustration, or pain he didn't know. He swerved around and snatched Touko's package from the ground and went in the house.

He made sure to slide the door quietly before taking a deep breath and yelling, "I'm home, Touko-san!"


	11. N: Day 10, No Easy Prey Here

Hmm, the chapters from here on out will be pretty tough to write, because so much is happening, but I think you readers will enjoy them =)

...OK, so that may be an excuse, and it's not the only one, haha. I can only point you to my list of fics, if you're really that curious ^^;

Anyways, the point is that getting two chapters in at a time may be a bit harder. Oh well.

Thank you for all those who fave'd and alerted and reviewed! The last one is best (of course), but the first two are a close second! Thank you!

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><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

He was sitting atop one of the grassy knolls within the forest when he heard a whisper. Over the past week, he'd come to associate the sensation with Rinne's version of a yell.

Immediately, he was on his guard. When the forest spirit called, it usually meant trouble. He spread his senses out, but there was nothing especially unusual…

Except for over by the west, where he had fought his first demon. There, walking on the road, was a human.

That in itself was not of importance, and he had just started to relax when he suddenly felt that the human had taken a complete 90-degree turn off the road, and straight into the woods.

The barrier was of two layers, Kousetsu had said. One was an aborted attempt, but it was powerful enough to mask most auras. This was the one that extended past the road and into the farm fields. The next started in the woods.

The human had just set foot past the second layer. If he had the slightest ounce of spiritual power, then the spirits were sitting ducks to him. Judging from the strength of his power, too, this was no ordinary person. An exorcist, perhaps?

Either way, there was no time to lose.

The man had just barely enough time to look up before he pounced, and the two were a flailing pile of limbs kicking up a storm of sticks and stones. Round and round and round and round…

At the bottom of the hill, they broke apart. He stood at a bit of a distance, panting, watching the other.

Despite the small tumble they had, the exorcist – for he couldn't be anything else – still looked like he belonged on a movie set. Even his clothes seemed artfully rumpled in a way that was almost intentional.

He stood some distance away, watching the man straighten his glasses. He stayed hunched over, just in case the other would try anything funny.

"Hmm," said the exorcist, breaking the silence, "so you're the one who's been causing all the trouble around here."

The man must be talking about the incident in the fields; he didn't remember going out any other time. There had been small-time demons who had attacked afterwards, but they were always within the barrier – had accidentally wandered in and decided that they quite liked the territory. "That was just an accident."

The other took off his hat and dropped it to the ground. "You're not quite what I expected when I received this offer. More talkative too. That's quite unusual. Regardless, I'm here to do a job."

"Stop! I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"No one will, if things go right. It would save both of us a lot of trouble if you relocate."

Neither made a move.

"No," was his simple response. Regardless whether he wanted to or not, the others couldn't very well up and leave. Some spirits were attached to the land in that way, especially these ones.

"That's too bad. Then will you let yourself be sealed?"

Before the man had finished his words, though, he felt someone close in on him from behind. On instinct, he ducked … and a katana soared over his head, barely missing his scalp.

It came down again, and this time, he jumped back. "I think I'd rather you two leave this place," he said. He didn't want to talk to them too much. Being this close to the exorcist was making his head hurt; he was so contentious.

The demon who had attacked was a humanoid. She held her sword in both hands, raised and on guard, as she placed herself between him and the exorcist.

As he was sizing her up, though, another presence appeared behind him. He turned his head and came face to face with another humanoid, this one with ram horns. She leapt forward, hands outreached at throat level.

He promptly swiped her down with a kick, and winced at the heavy thud her body made.

"You're pretty strong, for someone who doesn't like to fight," came the exorcist's voice, but he had no time to turn around because he was immediately set upon by the spirit with the sword. He shifted to the right, to avoid being skewered.

He reached into his pocket to pull out one of the charms. Suddenly his hand was jerked back, spilling the sheets of paper onto the ground. His arm was wrenched backwards. He almost turned, to try and pull his arm back, but then he saw a streak flash in the corner of his eyes. Aborting his attempt to free his hand, he leapt forward, almost twisting it in the process.

The sword slid into the dirt, smooth like cream.

He reached forward. The charms were too far, and drifting farther in the wind.

Again, the sword came. At the same time, a thread of hair wrapped around his throat this time. He wrenched his arm away. Pain shot through his shoulder – by now, he was sure it was dislocated. It was hard to move, too. Grimacing, he kicked, luckily catching the charging assailant in the face.

She fell backwards, sword skidding over the earth until it hit a tree and stopped.

Then, he heard something. He swiveled his head around, casting about for the source of the sound, the low, steady murmur…

…but the noose around his neck tightened, and he only managed to work out a gargle before air was cut from his lungs.

He drew his lips back in a snarl, annoyed. In desperation, he swiped, hand curled like a claw, at the bindings.

They snapped with surprising ease. He fell backwards, gasping.

Not wasting any time, he tried to relocate the sound. He lifted his head, and there, at some distance, knelt the exorcist. He was holding one hand up, eyes closed. The other hand rested on what look like a vase, around which was drawn circles and symbols in the ground.

He didn't recognize it; he didn't know what it was. He just knew all his hair stood on end and a feeling of dread was permeating through him, all the way to his toes.

He leapt to the ground, fingers scrabbling over the dirt. He had no time to lose.

Suddenly, the chanting stopped. "You're a special case, but you can still be sealed away. Don't think you're safe just because you're what you are." As though those words were a signal, thin black tendrils burst from the vase. There were hands, fingers splayed wide, reaching towards him.

They came closer, and closer…

He saw the smile of victory on the man's face.

But just before they reached him, they stopped. More precisely, they bounced.

"What?" cried the exorcist, and this time **he** was the one who had a smile stretched across his lips.

Because what was on the ground were the runes he had learned from Kousetsu, the one that created a barrier. He hadn't been sure it would work, but luckily, they seemed to be in complete working order. Silently, he made a note to thank the old spirit for the sore hands and tired eyes that day.

Taking advantage of the shock, he threw himself forward, hoisting himself up with one arm. Before the other could react, he struck.

The exorcist fell backwards with a shout.

Before the exorcist could try the same trick again, he leapt on top of the man, one hand locking the other's wrists over his head to prevent movement. The other struggled, but to no avail. "You should leave this place. If you come back again, then I'll chase you again, and if it happens yet again, I'll do it yet again."

"You … how did you…"

"Take your servants and go!" With one last annoyed growl, he heaved himself backwards and off the exorcist. He turned tail, not sparing the exorcist another glance, and, with a slight throbbing pain starting to blossom all over his chest and side, he bent over and picked up his charms.

Perhaps he should start being better prepared, so something like dropping all of them at once wouldn't happen again.

He disappeared back into the forest, leaving the human lying on the field.

As he approached the spot where the rest of the spirits were gathered, one of them left the group and approached him. When he saw that it was Igari, though, he stiffened and slowed his pace down. He just didn't want to meet the boar, simply because the spirit never had anything good to say.

And sure enough… "I thought we have already gone over this. Leaving your opponents alive is just an invitation for them to return."

He was tired, and he was irritated. He did not want to be dealing with this. "I simply didn't want to kill him. That would have created problems none of us want to deal with," he said, as he continued walking.

Igari grunted. "Excuses. You need to strengthen your resolve, if you are to be the Lord of this area."

It wasn't like he wanted to be it. It was forced on him. However, he didn't put these thoughts to words; it was troublesome, and he didn't have the energy for an argument.

Admittedly, it wasn't bad. He continued walking, without a response, towards where the others were waving to him. Ren broke into a rolling gait before leaping onto him with a happy cry and a slew of questions. The others gathered around him too. Despite their cold bodies (with the exception of Ren, who was actually a live Tanuki), he was surrounded by warmth. A smile of a different sort from before worked its way onto his face and into his heart.

However, there was still a feeling of something missing. Despite the obvious difficulties inherent in being on two different sides of a battle, this was the first time he'd met a human in what felt like forever. No, for him, it practically was the first time.

They were enemies, and they were dangerous, but **he** was human. A void that had only been a tiny hole had grown into a gaping abyss of longing over the past few days, and he hadn't noticed. Rather, perhaps it was because it was easier not to notice, or perhaps it was because he hadn't recognized it for what it was.

Nevertheless, he made plans to leave the forest tomorrow.

After a long, good night's sleep, that is.


	12. M: Days 10 and 11, Shedding Light

I will admit, this fic can get confusing, especially with "serializations" like here because you just forget what's happened previously.

I suppose the only hints I can give are these:

1. Whose POV you are reading from matters because, even without realizing it, the narrator may lie. Actually, I do lie, a lot. Sorry? (But I will not repent! lol)

2. Events are sort of crisscross-mentioned between at least two chapters. This should help, somewhat, with consolidating the two POVs together.

3. Also, almost everything happens for a reason. You probably know this already, though ^^;

There will be a "guest" POV coming up soon, I believe. Enjoy this chapter, in the meantime!

Don't forget to review!

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><p><strong>Chapter 12<strong>

"You're going somewhere, you said?" Shigeru asked over lunch.

Madara, in Natsume's form, nodded.

"He said it was for a visit to … uhm … Natori-san, was it? The one who came last time?" Touko added.

Again, he nodded.

"Well, you still have some time left before school starts. You're a grown boy now, so feel free to do what you want," said Shigeru.

Madara thought so too, but regardless Natsume always liked to report to them. Besides, this would be last "goody-goody" act he would be doing for a while, so may as well do it to the fullest. "I won't be gone long. You sure you'll be all right?"

(He was getting too good at this. He was definitely going to take a good, long drink after this, which would hopefully convince him that this whole episode was just a dream.)

"My, you don't have to worry about us two. It's only a week."

The meal continued with a hitch, and Madara savored the Fujiwara's food while he could. Perhaps he could convince them to make him a lunch for the trip (that was going to disappear down his stomach the moment he left the house).

Back in his room, he tried not to think about how he was actually taking the stupid exorcist's advice while he packed a bag for the trip-that-wasn't-happening. He would probably leave it with the Yatsuhara lot, who should be more than happy to watch over "Natsume-dono's" things. It was already late into the night by the time he finished.

"I'm leaving!"

"Have a safe trip!"

Standard human fare, and the last of it.

Good riddance.

When he opened the door, though, he realized his troubles were only beginning. Sighing, he shifted the shoulder the bag was on as he glared balefully at the visitor, who had the presence of mind to cringe. "What do you want, Tanuma?"

Madara looked the boy over. Not surprisingly, he didn't look too good; he had panda eyes, and he was definitely a bit paler than he was before – not that the priest's sickly son was that tan to begin with. He had his schoolbag with him, which was odd, but before he could ponder more on in, Tanuma broke in on his thoughts, "I need you to come with me."

The spirit snarled. "Who do you think you're talking to?"

Tanuma didn't even seem to notice the implied threat, though, so nervous was he. He was barely even looking Madara in the eyes … no, scratch that. He wasn't looking into them at all. "I need to tell you something, and I don't think you'd want Natsume's parents to know."

Madara glowered. The boy had something right, for once. "Come, let's walk over to Yatsuhara. You live around there, don't you?"

The boy nodded.

"I need to drop something off there, too, so you can tell me whatever it is you want to tell me on the way."

Tanuma shifted. "I'd … rather we get there first before I talk."

The spirit snorted. "Have it your way."

And so it was that two high school boys made their way down the streets of summer vacation, each with their respective bags. Heavy silence revolved around them, but Madara made no attempt in breaking it. Tanuma seemed to be sweating too much to even notice. Honestly, he couldn't think of any reason why the kid would be so nervous; it had been two days (three, if you counted the fact that it was almost past midnight) since he'd last talked to him. Surely he wasn't that bothered by what he'd said? If so, then he truly was a weak human.

When they had arrived at their destination, Madara set his bag down by the small shrine that stood in the forest. "So? What is it?"

Tanuma hesitated, as though he were carefully picking his words. "You've been with Natsume for a long time, so you know about his possessions."

Where was this going?

"And … I think you'd know what this is." With this, Tanuma reached into his bag … and pulled out something Madara, in his wildest dreams, had not even hoped to see any time soon, and certainly not before he had found the brat.

He swiped the harmless-looking book from the boy and flipped through the pages. It looked like all was in order – although he couldn't vouch for every single name, none were crumpled, ripped, or stained. The names were all still usable. "Where did you find this, kid," he demanded.

Tanuma flinched at the harsh tone. It must be odd, the expression he must be making with Natsume's face, but there were more important things to be worried about. Like why someone who wasn't Natsume had the Yuujinchou. Finally, with a bit of gulping, Tanuma seemed to regain some of his confidence and glared defiantly back, as though just to say, "I'm not afraid of you."

"I found it in your garden," replied the priest's child, "that day I visited you, after you left."

Madara couldn't stop shock from appearing on his features, but he quickly schooled it quiet. "You didn't do anything with it, did you?" By now, he was positively snarling.

Thankfully, Tanuma only shook his head. "I … tried to find out what it was. At first, I looked it up in the library, and then on the internet, but I couldn't find anything. There was nothing, though." Which wasn't surprising, because no human had ever heard of the Yuujinchou, and those that had probably had the brains to keep it to themselves.

"Nothing else?"

"Nothing else. I didn't even tell Taki about it…" At this, the boy's eyes shifted towards the ground again. "…How does Natsume do it? Keep secrets from all of us, I mean. It's … not easy."

Madara considered the boy in front of him, then sighed. "Starting to appreciate his hard work, are you?" He gestured to the book that was gripped tightly in his hands. "I'll be taking this. Be a good brat and run on ho-"

"Wait!"

He didn't appreciate being interrupted, and he let it be known.

"No, I don't want it back. It's just … the past two nights, while I had the book, I've been … having these strange dreams. It's … they're about Natsume."

This caught the spirit's attention. He narrowed his eyes. "Explain."

"I dream of his disappearance. A giant spirit comes and takes him away."

"Why are you only telling me this today?"

"Because I thought it was only a dream the first day! But then … when I had the exact same dream the next day, last night, I figured it probably had something to do with that book, which was why I brought it to you." Tanuma shook his head. "You can keep it. Natsume trusts you more than he trusts me."

Madara ignored the barely hidden pained expression on the boy's face. "What did this spirit look like?" Perhaps there were some clues there.

"It was really vivid, and it was only my second time seeing one, so I remember it really well." Tanuma looked skywards. "It was about as tall as that first branch on the tree there, and it had long white hair. Its skin was slightly green, and … well…"

"Spit it out."

"I don't know if this sounds weird, but its body was a head, only a head"

And just like that, Madara knew exactly who this particular demon was … except last he'd checked, it was with…

He looked down at the book in his hand. There was a long period of silence that wasn't even interrupted by the humming of summer cicadas. He suddenly stepped forward, closing in on Tanuma. Before the other had the opportunity to look scared or uncomfortable, Madara reached for the damn brat's schoolbag and thrust the Yuujinchou into it.

"What…"

"Take that, and the bag there. I'm going. Keep that for a week. The kid'll be back by then."

"So the dream was true? It really was-"

But before he could finish his question, Madara vanished, to Tanuma's eyes at least. To the spirits and a few choice humans, he was now a giant beast, a great white dog that would rain terror on the stupid fools who had decided to lay hands on what was his.

"Why?" cried the boy, regardless of the fact he could no longer see whom he was questioning, "Why me? I never had that power in the first place…"

"Just be glad you could help Natsume in the first place," grumbled Madara as he leapt from the forest floor, though the other couldn't hear him. Quite honestly, he had no idea either, although if he had to speculate, it was because demons weren't the only ones capable of forming attachments.

The book wanted to go back to Natsume.

What an absurd thought. It was an object, a thing, albeit a thing surrounded day and night by spiritual energy as strong as Natsume's. Still, it wouldn't have been enough to cause sentience.

Shouldn't have.

Now was not the time for such thoughts, though. Either way, now that he knew who had taken Natsume, he had to look….

So focused was Madara on his thoughts, he almost didn't notice when a great black blur shot right in front of his path through the sky. Just in time, he bounded backwards, avoiding collision.

"What do you want, Misuzu? I'm in a hurry."

The horse demon grinned, an absurd stretching of the lips on an equine snout. The smile held no mirth, though. "Oh, surely not so much in a hurry that you wouldn't have time to hear this."

"Have you found something useful?"

"Oh? The great Madara has lowered himself to hearing the words of others, on his own will? What sort of wind blows here?"

"Just tell me. I told you I'm in a hurry."

The horse's eyes narrowed. "It seems that would be wise, for Natsume-dono is most likely at Tateyama."

"Tateyama…" It was at least half a day's flight, even at full speed. "What do you mean 'most likely?' Were your little friends unable to determine for sure?"

Misuzu ignored the jab. "The last sighting of Natsume-dono was over the area before he was dropped from the sky by the demon that had him in its jaws." He huffed. "Unfortunately, there is a strong barrier around the forest, enveloping approximately half the mountain and some of the human settlements besides, impeding any detection of Natsume-dono's aura signature."

"Stop speaking in riddles, stupid rocking horse."

"Think, for once. It means that once you arrive, you will find yourself effectively blind. Also, those who have tried to enter have all been chased out by a vicious beast who, according to local residents, is a new occupant. There is no way to ascertain that Natsume-dono is truly in the area, and that he is alive." The pale eyes shifted over to rest on Madara. "Wouldn't you be overcome with joy, then, for then you would be the rightful owner of the Yuujinchou?"

"Hah, sucks to be you, doesn't it?" because Misuzu's name was still, after all this time, still scrawled on those innocent white sheets. Madara looked into the distance, though, trying to mentally draw a map. His knowledge of geography was rusty; he hadn't used it in a while, always having relied on human transportation recently, and being sealed before that.

Once he was sure he had his destination correct, he shoved by the other spirit and leapt forward, striding forward two bounds at a time.

Misuzu's departing words just barely reached his ears, threading through the wind, "I will follow, in due time. Don't rashly cause Natsume-dono to lose his life!"

The dog spirit snorted at the warning and promptly decided he would forget it.

He knew where Natsume was. Natsume was there, and most likely in danger. If he wasn't already, then he would be in a very short period of time.

And hopefully, hopefully, he was still alive.

Because the enemy they were dealing with this time never did like to wait, and they didn't take failure for an answer.


	13. N: Day 11, Musings

Whoops. I may have gone on a bit longer than I should have, in this chapter.

In the brief period I have not been writing this chapter, my style has apparently warped itself. Weird.

I was having a brief period of self-doubt with this story, mostly because I was starting to liken it to a thriller novel, the kind you find in serialized magazines or something. Thank for those who've reviewed this story. It's really a confidence booster =)

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><p><strong>Chapter 13<strong>

Humans truly were different.

At first glance, that was obvious. Even if he had lost all sense of the world and remembered nothing except for how to speak and the numbers one to ten, he'd be able to tell that spirits and humans looked different. Even the humanoid ones wore masks, and sometimes they had markings on their face. Even if one were to rip the mask off, one would see dull eyes, darker in comparison than anything a human could possess.

He knew all of this. He didn't know how he knew, but this must have been something he'd lived with, the knowledge resting close to his heart, before he'd lost his memories.

He also knew that, on a certain level, humans were the same as spirits. They felt happy, and they felt sad. They grew angry, and they became lonely. They had emotions, and as much as some purists felt that humans were the only truly sentient beings on this planet, demons shared human thought processes and their emotional capacity as well.

(He also knew this, in the same manner as he knew everything else he didn't know how to explain.)

But, sitting in the bushes near a house, he realized that, in the end, demons and humans were different. It wasn't circular thinking. It was like saying that a red-and-white bull's eye target was same, yet different, from a red-and-black one. There were some parts that were obviously the same – to him – but others that were irrevocably different.

For example, the understanding of life. In his time with the demons he'd come to live with, he'd realized that they lived everyday with today at the foremost. There was no need to think about a tomorrow because tomorrow could be filled with death and misery. Tragedy struck swiftly and without cause, so it was important to live each moment to the fullest. There was no intention to prevent death however; there was the implicit understanding that it happened to all, even the greatest of spirits that have survived for thousands of years.

Perhaps it was because they were closer to death, being incorporeal. No, those were his thoughts as a human. From a spirit's point of view, perhaps they're just another form of matter, like gas to solids. The only difference was that when they died, there was no body left.

Below him, a man kissed his wife goodbye as he settled into his car. She waved, standing in the driveway, watching him pull out and eventually disappear around the corner. She then headed back into the house to make food for the children, who were just waking up.

Humans lived for the future. He wasn't romanticizing or anything; it was just what he observed. The fact that they worked instead of played, in and of itself, was like a delay, holding back so that they could party all night long later. Splurge the hard-earned money in a vicious binge, perhaps. He felt he'd seen that happen before. It sounded familiar.

It was also why they called exorcists – to prevent future attacks. They hadn't done anything yet, but apparently his previous battle had alerted the people to possible troublemakers, and the townspeople had decided to take pre-emptive action.

But then, it wasn't all that bad, was it? He was human too; he could understand the benefits. The harder the work, the greater the benefits.

It was strange. Humans and spirits were so similar, yet so different.

He missed being with other people. It was a vague wish, sort of an empty hollow in his chest, remembering to ache only when it decided the moment was best, but no matter how much he liked the spirits, they were … well, spirits. They weren't his kind.

The bushes he was lying in were the closest to the field. There had been nowhere else to hide. The door was tightly closed. He could hear footsteps upstairs.

Safe, he decided, and he crawled out. He made it to the road and looked around. There was no one on the streets; he was lucky. He shook the leaves off himself, and pulled down his clothes. There, he paused. After all, his garments looked like they hadn't been washed in a week (which they hadn't). He'd tried not to think about it, while he was in the forest, but now that it was brought to the forefront of his mind, he couldn't shake the thought away. He would find a river to wash at least his shirt in later. It still stank vaguely of blood, from yesterday.

That couldn't be helped yet, though, so he let it be.

While he couldn't pass for a tourist (maybe he could, for a **lost** one), he could probably pass as a homeless person or perhaps someone who was recently beaten up. The prospect wasn't lifting, but at the very least he … would look human.

He strode down the cement street, concrete hot beneath his soles. He had forgone his shoes, long ago. The sun had already warmed the road surface, and it was just at that point before it grew blisteringly hot. He strayed to the side of the street, near the shadows cast by the walls. It was cooler there.

(He felt safer there too. Another instinct from his past?)

He hadn't really tried to remember. He'd always figured it would come when the time came. However, it had already been more than a week. Perhaps some forcing was needed. The town didn't seem familiar, so he was hard put to say that he'd lived here before. If he did, someone would probably recognize him. This thought gave him some hope, and he walked forward with renewed vigor.

A dog barked beyond the wall. The sound was so sudden, it caused him to jump. It was even snarling, and he heard the noise of straining chain. Alarmed, he hurried away from that house.

Most people were either at work or school, so the town was relatively empty. He sighed. He should return before Igari got mad at him again. The boar was probably going to die of heart disease, from stress, if it weren't impossible for spirits to do so.

As he turned the corner, though, he came face to face with someone.

It was a boy. A toddler, even, of about … two years? Three? Clothed in the sort of ill-colored patchwork of clothes that only children could wear, he hobbled forward on two ungainly legs, hands outstretched. A giant grin was on the child's face as he approached.

When he found the presence of mind to knock on the door to his brain, he found it out for lunch. .

"Hello," he managed to say. Awkward didn't even begin to describe it. He had a feeling he had never been good with kids, or was it just that he'd never had he experience?

Well, at least he knew he wasn't a father now.

The boy didn't respond, just came closer. Perhaps he couldn't talk yet?

Suddenly, there were another set of footsteps, ones that went _clack clack_. High heels, the boy's mother. He looked up and put on a smile, ready to greet the woman. However, she spoke first.

Rather, she screeched.

"Get away from him, you monster!"

She halted, some distance away from the both of them. The toddler still hadn't noticed anything wrong, but he did look back when he heard his mother's voice. She gestured to him. "Come here, baby. Come closer." She looked nervous, sweating. It didn't suit her.

"I'm sorry, miss," he tried to say, "I didn't mean any harm."

But before he could finish, she had stopped paying attention. She was scanning the ground. With a drop in his stomach, he knew what she was doing. She found what she was looking for, bent down, and picked up a rock.

She threw.

"Get away from my baby!"

He ducked, hands curled over his head. His mind was blank again, but for a different reason.

It was dangerous. He should run.

Another stone came. There were more footsteps.

"What's wrong, Yukiko?"

Before the man – for it was a man's voice – could turn the corner, he turned tail and ran. He didn't hear her reply, nor did he see her sweep her child into her arms, weeping with relief.

Perhaps it was more accurate to say that he didn't want to see.

He ran and ran. He didn't know where he was going, but before he knew could decide on a destination, he had already arrived at it – the edge of the forest.

He heard a voice. "Nushi-samaa!" It was a bright, clear clarion that rang through his gloom. He almost laughed, staggering forward, slightly winded, to ease the tanuki boy's anxiety.

He wasn't bothered.

No, he wasn't, not at all. He was … stronger than that. Yes, he'd always endured such treatment before; it was nothing new. Somehow, he just knew. Humans hated those different from themselves, and he was different.

That was another difference between humans and spirits.


	14. Na: Day 11, Past and Present

This chapter got a little long. It's by far the longest in this story.

On another note, I recently got my hands on the Natsume Yuujinchou raws, including the newest volume ... and promptly cracked up. Let's just say I managed to predict some of the events down to a T. The only thing I managed to miss was the exact characterization of the people involved, but given the different situations this specific character was in, I'd like to think the change in personality is forgivable.

I suppose you could say this is a celebration for the end of Natsume Yuujinchou San, but the new season is coming in only three months, so there's little point. I'm just glad they seem to find the whole series worthy of animation, since that isn't very common in manga. Usually they just stop somewhere halfway through, go "this is a good stopping point!" and just leave it be.

I'm still sore about Pandora Hearts and Flames of Recca. *twitch*

Anyways, enjoy this chapter! Please review? Rather, I've gotten some really wonderful ones lately, so I'm a very happy camper! Thank you all!

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><p><strong>Chapter 14<strong>

Ever since he was little, Shuuichi had always seen spirits. It had been something so natural to him that he hadn't thought anything odd of it until he was old enough to be told that his "imaginary friends" weren't real.

But they weren't imaginary. He knew, because when they moved, the leaves moved and the water rippled. When they pushed him, he fell, whether it was into a harmless puddle or down a cliff or into incoming traffic. When they scratched at him, their claws left red lines down his arm that couldn't be explained by any fall from a tree or a stray cat's anger.

And they weren't friends, because friends didn't attack each other. Friends didn't chase each other down the street, yell that they wanted to eat each other, and they surely didn't hurt others near him just for the sheer fun of it.

All for amusement. It was all for their twisted enjoyment.

Unfortunately for Shuuichi, they were everywhere. Spirits were after all not bound by the laws of physics, and even less by the boundaries created by material objects. They appeared when he was at home, when he was at school, and when he was in class. Once they had even appeared in his bedroom, and even though it was a relatively harmless looking cat demon, it still kept him up at night with its caterwauling.

The end result was that Shuuichi became a very good liar in order to maintain a normal life.

And how could life be any better? He had friends, he did well in class, and he didn't have any trouble with the spirits. He avoided their eyes, and instead met the eyes of his human companions. He even became an actor because he was so good at pretending, and it rolled in the money like nothing else.

But like a curse, the spirits followed him. No, to be more precise, he couldn't stop his eyes from following them (even if he did avoid theirs). He saw them play tricks on unsuspecting humans, and he saw them bring disaster upon the heads of innocents.

He couldn't even look at a mirror without being reminded of their plague. Every so often, across the face of his reflection, the gecko-shaped tattoo would crawl, reminding him that he wasn't normal. (Granted, the creeping mark was a help sometimes because even the spirits would sometimes startle at the sight of it. He wasn't sure why, but it was definitely handy in distinguishing human from non-human.) His desire to rid himself of the denigrating mark was the final straw that pushed him to rid himself of his trepidations and jump into the supernatural world.

He became an exorcist. He wasn't so deluded as to say it was from the good of his heart, to protect the innocents. Quite the contrary, it was probably from a bitter desire for revenge. It wasn't very paying, so he kept it on the side, a "hobby" for his free time, but he pursued it with the same persistence they had when they hounded his life.

Even when he met Urihime and Sasago, he hadn't noticed them for their kindness, their desire to help, but for their usefulness. They wanted to follow him – he had no idea why – but he was still in his early years as an exorcist and he needed all the help he could get, so he hadn't refused.

And then he had met Hiiragi (for the second time), and with her came Natsume. Natsume, who was the preface to a whole new beginning, because it was after he had met him that he'd started to see spirits in a new light. There were good spirits, and there were bad ones. Though they differed in many more ways – appearance and in the heart – they were, in the end, like humans.

They felt pain.

They felt loneliness.

Granted, he wasn't about to change his methods. Not even Natsume, impressed as he was of him (such abilities and power! If only he had the motivation, and there was definitely something to be said about that naivety…) could change everything all at once. People died, and so did spirits. The world was not some soft cartoon-scape where no one died and everyone had a happy ending. The job was the job. That was just the kind of person Shuuichi was.

Jobs came in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes he received personal requests, and other times he looked for jobs that were more bounties than anything else.

This time, the job had been one of the former. The rice from the fields had been disappearing in enormous batches every harvest and it was eating into the profits of the people in the land near Tateyama. The town's main stable was the rice and even though there were the basic signs of urbanization, it was still a mostly agricultural-based area.

And then an entire field ended up being knocked out of commission by a mysterious whoosh of wind, and the people decided enough was enough. That was where he came in.

Tateyama was right on the other side of Natsume's town from where Shuuichi had been, so he'd thought it would be fun if the other boy tagged along too. He truly did enjoy spending time with him; despite their difference in age and views, it was like finally meeting another of his species.

He wasn't alone in the world.

But Natsume was missing. He'd been missing for more than a week and he hadn't been found. The stupid cat of his wasn't even doing its job properly. Some bodyguard. The damn thing wasn't even thinking straight, and the thought was enough to make Shuuichi grit his teeth in frustration and outrage.

So Shuuichi had taken it into his own hands to start on his search. Unfortunately, a job was a job (and there were responsibilities involved). Despite his worries, he reasoned that one more day would probably be the least harmful thing for Natsume (since the stupid cat had already let so many slip by) and went on with his job. He could at least ask around, right?

Unfortunately, there wasn't any information to be found. No one had seen anyone with Natsume's description or name. It was very disheartening, but searching for Natsume in Japan was going to be like looking for straw in a haystack. He had somewhat expected it. Such was life.

The only thing left had been to seal the demon, assure the townspeople they and their crop was safe, and to leave, preferably to somewhere with a strong information network.

He definitely hadn't expected to be defeated. Kicked out. Condescendingly let go and left alive.

He sat in the inn room he'd rented. The view was good, looking over the fields. The rice plants swayed like waves in the ocean, in time and in rounds with the wind. A sea of green, yet it was interrupted by the sparkle of sunlight reflecting off the marshy pits of the field. Beyond that was the forest, greenery as far as the eyes could see as the land rose into one of Japan's many holy mountains.

It was truly a sight to behold, and a perfect spot for vacationing. If only Shuuichi were in such a mood, and if only he weren't in such dire conditions.

"Hiiragi, has your bleeding stopped?" he asked the one-eyed demon who was resting on the floor. She had just recently regained consciousness. Spirits healed easier than humans, not being of the flesh (another reason Shuuichi was less than hesitant about causing bodily harm to them), and nothing short of an exorcised blow could cause permanent damage.

"Yes, Natori-sama. The demon seemed to be holding back."

Shuuichi barely withheld a snort. It wasn't fitting of his image, even if there wasn't anyone nearby who cared. "Holding back or not, it still managed to do a number on us. Sasago is still unconscious, and Urihime just woke up. She returned to sleep soon after, though, to heal her wounds." He remembered the flurry and whoosh of the monster's long tails, flinging Hiiragi to the ground. The long sharp claws that had rent Urihime's binds in two as though they were mere spider webs. The rush of fur and hot breath as the demon had leaped on top of him, face close to his.

Hiiragi was silent. At first Shuuichi thought it was because of their loss and how it was supposedly her fault (she had an awful habit of shifting all the guilt to herself), but he was taken off guard by her next words. "Did that spirit seem … familiar to you?"

If she implied that it looked familiar, then absolutely not. However, there was something, something he had felt the moment the demon had snarled down his neck. Perhaps it was the eyes – the honey-colored irises with the slit through them that seemed to see and observe everything. Perhaps it was the aura – something that seemed so familiar that he was hard put not to actually **relax** when the other had entered his personal bubble and started threatening in a rather frightening manner. (No matter his experience as an exorcist, being confronted with a face of teeth was never a pleasant experience.) Either way, a strange feeling had come over him, something that seemed to have settled within him and stuck like Velcro. The hooks nagged at him and demanded attention. It was unsettling.

The most infuriating part was that he couldn't pinpoint exactly why, even though he knew he should.

"Natori-sama?" Hiiragi's voice broke through his thoughts.

"What? Oh, sorry, I got sidetracked. Yes, he does feel familiar, but I can't tell why."

The spirit only looked down in reply.

"You know?"

"But it doesn't seem very possible…" She seemed very unsure of herself, so Shuuichi decided not to press.

He looked up, and a shape caught his eye out of the window. "Isn't that…"

The white speck zoomed closer and plastered itself against the glass. Shuuichi stood and opened the window. "Is it out?"

Hiiragi nodded. "Yes, I sense him nearby. There is a strange buffer in the area that is stifling my senses, but just now, it was very clear."

He was just about to turn away when another paper doll came zipping into sight. "What's this?" He picked the doll hovering before his eyes from the air and held it, turning it over in his palm. When he saw his own note on this particular one, he groaned.

"Natori-sama?"

"It seems like a fellow colleague of mine is in the area." Originally, he had set the guard up to prevent them from meeting each other, but as things were, he couldn't just leave. He'd just have to be extra careful to avoid Matoba altogether.

Again, he was about to turn, but yet again, a white form appeared. "Again? I didn't even set this many dolls out in the first place!" he complained, exasperated, but as the words left his mouth he realized that this time, the form was rather large. And furry. And canine-looking.

"Natsume's cat?" He shoved open the window and stuck his head out, waving. "Hey! Stupid meat bun! Over here!" Luckily, there was no one on the streets to turn their head up at him and look at him like he belonged in an institution.

The large demon seemed to be sniffing around the ground for something. The very fact that Natsume's "bodyguard" was here was strange, since he'd last left him at the boy's home. They hadn't exactly left on good terms. Had the idiot really taken his words to heart and started his own search?

The spirit looked up. "Natori? So this is where your job is?" He lifted his massive head, looking into the distance. "What a coincidence."

"Coincidence?"

"I received word that Natsume's in this area. You wouldn't happen to have run into him, would you?"

"I've already asked around, but I've heard nothing either-" but just as he said those words, his breath caught in his throat.

Natsume?

He hadn't really linked the two trains of thought together until now, so it hadn't even occurred to him. Rather, even now, right after it had occurred to him, Hiiragi was right. It was just downright impossible.

Then again, maybe there was some spell?

"What. What is it? You thought of something?" Shuuichi was suddenly confronted by the dog demon's eyes up-close. He must have something from his expression.

Shuuichi shifted, trying not to show his discomfort at having such a large (and powerful, when he wanted to be) spirit so close and paying such close attention to him. "It's not… I really have no idea how to express it. To be precise, I think it would be best if you go to check it with your own eyes. I'll come with you, so wait there for a second?" Shuuichi didn't wait for the demon's affirming grunt before turning around and running out the room.

"Natori-sama! You're not planning on seeing him again, are you?" Hiiragi cried.

"Him." It wasn't "it" anymore, Shuuichi noticed. Hiiragi had known, or at least, her train of thought was definitely the same as his own.

Shuuichi checked his pockets, making sure he'd brought everything he needed. He didn't waste any words.

"Wait! Let me come with y-" her words were cut off by a cringe. Shuuichi ran up to her side to lay her down again on the futon.

"You know yourself you're not in any condition. Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"If I can't go then … at least take someone! Urihime was fine, you said?"

"I said she'd woken, not in any condition to fight. Don't worry. As unreliable as the stupid cat is, he's pretty strong. I'm sure in this case, he'll actually put in his all."

"He won't protect you. He has his sights set on only one objective."

"I won't get in his way, this one time." Again, Shuuichi made his way to the door. "Don't follow me. Rest up, and I'll be back before you wake up, with any luck."

Outside, Natsume's familiar was still at the door. He was starting to paw the ground in irritation. Shuuichi was surprised he'd waited in the first place.

"You're slow! Hurry it up!"

Shuuichi ignored his words. "Wouldn't it be better you were in your cat form?"

"It'd be faster if we went by air."

And ignore all pretense of normalcy, because surely someone in this town would catch sight of him riding on thin air? Sure, why not? "It's in the forest. Traveling by air will only make landing more difficult, so it'll be better to go by foot."

The demon grunted in annoyance, but a puff of smoke later and the fat cat appeared again. "You better make this worth my time!"

"Oh trust me, if my hunch is correct," and he didn't know if he wanted it to be, "then this will be just what you're looking for."

"You've already met Natsume then?" Shuuichi stumbled as the cat clambered onto his shoulder, but he set off into a light jog with the sandbag on his back. (How had Natsume done this all the time?) He needed to conserve his energy for what was next, considering the other's hostility towards intruders at the moment.

"In a sense," was Shuuichi's only reply as the two hurried towards the forest.


	15. M: Day 11, True Appearances

I didn't get quite as much as I wanted done for the Halloween celebration as I wanted, but I wanted at the very least to get this fic done and out.

Last night, it snowed, 3 inches (in October). Apparently this hasn't happened since the 1970s. It also managed to make half the trees in our backyard keel over and snap. I feel like I just witnessed mass genocide...

On a side note, poor trick-or-treaters. Hope it gets warmer, for their sake.

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><p><strong>Chapter 15<strong>

Madara hadn't known what to think when he had first seen Natori on the streets. He'd only figured it would be easier to search for Natsume without the limitations of a clay cat form. His nose was stronger, he was faster and could cover a wider area. It truly was an odd feeling, being so near the barrier. It was like a blindfold was wrapped around his entire being and he couldn't sense anything in the vicinity, and even though he could see with his eyes and hear with his ears, it was almost like watching a film. Something always felt missing.

He was already plenty distracted when the exorcist stuck his head out the inn window, as though they had been together all along.

But then, Natori had said that he'd seen Natsume, although he'd been awfully dodgy about the specifics. The man had refused to tell him anything more, and instead led the way towards the forest.

The moment the man had passed the rice fields, Madara felt like someone had suddenly turned the volume to max on the silent film. He buried his head into the closest surface, which happened to be Natori's shoulder.

"Hm? Something wrong?"

Madara twitched. "You mean you can't feel it?"

"Feel what?"

"The aura. Everything suddenly started **blaring** when you stepped onto the road."

"Oh…" Natori trailed off, looking as though he were in thought. He was probably trying to strain his own senses. After a while, he slumped. "I'm sorry, I'm no good when it comes to these things. Hiiragi's much better than I am."

"Bah, useless humans."

Then, just when he'd started to get attenuated to his senses returning to him, they were deafened again by the equivalent of a giant blare the moment the human set foot into the forest.

"Gaah, warn me before you do that again!" Madara wanted to cover his ears with his paws, but he couldn't do both while clinging to Natori's shoulder. Plus, he wasn't too sure his paws reached around his head.

"Do what?" The kid was starting to look alarmed.

"Never mind…" Madara grumbled. "Just hurry along. What was it you wanted to show me?"

"I already told you, you'll know when we get th-"

He never finished his sentence. Madara, effectively blinded, didn't see it coming either and ended up getting launched high into the air as **something** leaped from the trees above and knocked Natori to the ground.

The cat spat the dirt out of his mouth. "You fool, be more caref-!" he said before he choked down his words.

Natsume!

But as he lifted his eyes to see the two grappling just a few meters away, it had never been more obvious that this was **not** Natsume.

"I knew you'd come back here… Why can't you just leave!" cried "it," claws sprawled on both of Natori's shoulders, snout dripping with teeth just a few centimeters from his nose.

"We seem to be in this position quite a lot. Is there something you wish to tell me?" quipped the exorcist, but even from this distance Madara could tell that he was not joking.

Its fur was a tea brown, light and slightly yellow, and its two tails, though nowhere nearly as gorgeous as Madara's own, furled like alert snakes behind it. Its triangular ears were folded back against its skull, and its lips were drawn back from its canines. Around its two front paws were wrapped two long strips of paper, decorated with runes.

The fox had the honey brown eyes and the aura of Natsume Takashi.

Unnerved, but trying to maintain his composure, Madara stayed back, resting on all four stumpy paws. "I don't suppose you have a likely explanation for all of this?"

It was Natori who picked up the question, although it had been directed at both. "Hiiragi had a theory, but she finds it just as impossible as you do right now."

Madara practically collapsed from the relief. He'd finally found him. Natsume was there, right in front of him.

With the problem of actually locating his wayward charge cleared, Madara prepared himself for the next hurdle. Appearances aside, there were other questions that needed answering. There weren't many reasons Natsume would attack his friends, especially one he trusted as much as Natori.

"Why aren't you leaving? Go!" the fox yipped again, tired of being ignored. Now that Madara looked closer, its limbs were shaking, and its tails were twitching left and right not out of agitation, but out of nervousness. Natsume never did have an assertive personality, but he was clearly hostile against the two of them.

"I call your bluff," said the cat, startling Natsume as he whipped his head up. "Stupid Natsume, what in the world have you gotten yourself into? Did some spirits tell you that they needed some help, so you fell head over heels to get it to them?"

"Natsume," chipped in Natori, "I don't know if you were put up to this, but you need to come home. Everyone's worried about you."

"Home? 'Natsume?'" repeated the fox. The tension was starting to leave its limbs, but Madara was more concerned with what Natsume had just said. The creature shook his head vigorously. "Stop trying to confuse me. Please, just leave!"

"I'm sorry, but we can't do that," Natori said without a trace of a smile. "Not until you come back with us."

Natsume growled. Madara didn't know what the brat was playing at, but this was one time the spirit would not cave in. He was not going to play house for the next fifty years so that Natsume could run wild for the rest of his.

He hadn't even considered the possibility that Natsume would be so desperate as to charge at **him**. He almost didn't dodge in time as Natsume's sharp claws sank into the earth.

A wave of anger crashed inside Madara. With a large billow of smoke, the small clay pseudo-cat was replaced by his true form in all its glory. From sheer size alone, he knocked the unruly fool backwards. "Oh?" hummed Madara, "Did you actually think you could get away with attacking me, you stupid, ungrateful brat?" He advanced a step, making Natsume retreat three. "I didn't come all this way to indulge your temper tantrums!"

"Wait, Cat!" cried Natori, "We're not here to fight him!"

"Every child needs to be taught a lesson!" With that, he lunged forward, jaws first.

It was the second time that day he'd eaten dirt.

He looked up, and there was Natsume, wide-eyed with surprise and fear (Madara could smell them radiating from him). Good, he'd better be scared. Shifting his weight onto his front claw, he dived forward again.

Again, his jaws clamped around nothing but air.

"Stay still!" he grumbled, but the fox would do no such thing. He weaved between the paws, around the jaws trying to clamp around him, and scampered up Madara's side to his neck … where he brought one claw back and swiped.

Madara roared in pain. "You little prick, you actually went that far…" He threw himself to the ground. Not able to react in time, Natsume was pinned under his neck.

Went that far… But Natsume wasn't the kind to attack others unless it was a matter of life or death. Even for the sake of demons, even if they had requested Natsume to follow along with some crazy plan of theirs, the fool wouldn't go this far.

There was something wrong, something more wrong than just this sudden change in appearance.

Wind knocked out of him, the fox didn't move as Madara stood. A whoosh, and the canine was wrapped tightly in paper bindings with a strength that belied their fragile appearance.

"I hope you didn't hurt him, stupid cat," said Natori as Natsume struggled and strained, jaws clamping shut with the swiftness of a steel-trap over and over again.

"He looks quite energetic to me," said Madara as he placed a paw over his ward. The kid had escaped from the chains before, and quite easily at that. He didn't want to risk it this time. "Natsume, I'll ask you again. What have you gotten yourself into this time?"

"What do you want?" shouted back the fox.

"We're your friends, Natsume," said Natori, approaching slowly. "You can tell us what's going on, and we'll help."

"Friends?" snorted the boy. "Friends don't try to body slam each other." The slanted eyes narrowed. "I don't even know if you're telling the truth. Why should I believe you?"

"Truth? The truth about what?" prompted Natori.

Madara snorted. "Maybe we weren't important enough and he forgot all about us in these two weeks."

Right after he said that sentence, he froze. He remembered Natsume's earlier words and he realized why something just felt off. The tight clench in his ribcage didn't let up when Natsume uttered his next words. "I … really don't remember." He finally ceased his struggles.

"Don't remember … don't remember what?" Natori had almost certainly figured it out, as well, but he was still denying it.

But Natsume was done with his moment of weakness. "Just let me go, all right? I don't know what you want, but please, promise not to hurt anyone here."

"You fool, that's not the problem here," growled the white spirit. "The problem is that **you** apparently don't know who we are. Nor do you seem to know who you yourself are either."

Natori's head shot up. "You mean … amnesia?"

"It's not impossible."

"But that's so unlikely…"

"Then why not ask him, then?" Madara turned to Natsume, who was still trapped beneath his claws. "Do you know who you are?"

There was no hiding the kid's flinch. "From your conversation, I'm … assuming my name is Natsume?" he said haltingly.

Natori removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "This … wasn't what I was expecting."

"I don't think anyone expects to find someone with amnesia, you dolt." Looking back down, Madara continued, "Your name is Natsume Takashi and you've been missing for two weeks. We can sort out the details later, but first, we need to get go-"

For the second time that day, the ground burst beneath him and he lost his footing with a cry. Before he knew what was going on, he hit the ground with a thud and a wall, a large mass, stabbed upwards. With a roar, he swung his claws.

Again and again they came. "Enough!" White enveloped Madara's body and immediately, the assault shrank back, shirking the purifying light.

A heavy silence hung over the group, interrupted only by Madara's heavy pants.

Natsume was nowhere to be found.

Natori knelt and examined the splinters. "These are tree roots. There must be a spirit controlling them."

But Madara wasn't listening. Rather, Madara was darkly chuckling, a low rumble that deeply unsettled Natori, judging from the man's expression. "Ooh they've done it now. I have had **enough**."

The exorcist sighed. "And finally, he's snapped."

"You say something?"

"No, nothing at all."

Without another word, Madara launched himself forward. Within the barrier, he could see Natsume's position as clear as day. As two figures appeared in the distance, the snarl twisted itself into a smirk of anticipation.

They were so going down. And then he'll drag Natsume by his little twin tails, beat the story out of him, and then settle down for a good night's rest.

Yes, that sounded like a very good plan.


	16. N: Day 11, Danger on the Horizon

**Chapter 16**

Headaches were his constant companion now, and the closer the two came, the more they intensified. He suppressed the itch in his throat before it rumbled forth into a growl. The exorcist must be really strong … but more importantly, his intuition was right. The man was back.

He didn't know how he knew; he just did. And here the exorcist was, alone.

He tightened his grip around the branch. He tensed, preparing himself, and when the man was directly below him, he sprung.

Around and around they rolled, and he actually managed to get the upper hand. He didn't think his bravado worked as well as he wanted it to, though, and he'd made a huge miscalculation.

He should have noticed that the majority of his migraines happened whenever his eyes swept past the white bun resting on the man's shoulders. He should have noticed that all the power seemed to be emanating from it.

Admittedly, he'd thought it was some strange fashion statement, like a puffy white muffler … or something.

When he was flung backwards and pinned under the giant spirit, he had only himself to blame, and he was frustrated and tired of everything happening at once. "What do you want," he'd asked, and they hadn't given him the answer he'd been expecting. They weren't after the spirits. Instead, they had told him he was someone they knew, a friend.

Him? Friends with a human and his pet?

(No … the spirit was too strong to be anyone's pet, and he valued freedom more than anything else. Maybe…?)

They had to be lying. But he wanted to listen. Maybe what they were saying was the truth?

"Natsume Takashi." The name rolled off his tongue like water, familiar to his muscles but not to his mind. He wanted to check, to ask them more, but then hell broke loose.

He felt Rinne surge forward, and quickly he tried to stop him. The chaos drowned out his voice, though, and then he felt the weight on his torso lift as the dog fell. Irrationally, he wanted to rush forward to check, to see if he was all right. With a burst of strength, he ripped the paper bonds around his body. "Nya-" he started crying, but then he stopped. What had he wanted to say?

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt a rather insistent tug on his pant leg. "Nushi-sama, w-we should go!"

Ren? "No, I … I think I… They know who I am, Ren. I need to ask them."

This seemed to startle the little tanuki, but he immediately pulled himself together. "I-it's too d-d-dang-gerous right now!" he stuttered. He looked to be on the verge of tears, but despite his obvious reluctance and anxiety, Ren was stronger than he looked. He found himself being dragged hopping, skipping, and slouching at great speed away from the battlefield.

"Where are we going?"

"We sh-should go back-k to the clearing… Kakuyuki and I-Igari-sama are holding them back."

He found his worry shifting from the strange dog spirit to the two he knew. There was no lost love between the boar and him, but he didn't wish harm upon him.

"We should go back and help…"

Ren just shook his head vigorously, and the two continued on their way.

It wasn't long, though, before he felt something approaching. "Something" was an understatement to describe the large mass of pure power barreling towards them. A large rush of wind, during which he actually had to reach back to the raccoon's tiny body and anchor him down, blew past him. He screwed his eyes shut, bearing down until the assault was over.

When he opened them again, the spirit from before was towering before him. "Did you think those two could actually stop me? Fool Natsume, I'll beat it into your head how strong the great Madara is again, if I have to!"

He glared at the dog above him as Ren cowered beneath him, paws clamped over his head as he shivered in a ball. "If you're going to keep going like this, I'm never going back with you."

The spirit (Madara?) snorted. "What lies did they feed you? That they were innocents, under attack from human invaders? There are no innocent demons, Natsume." He huffed. "Then again, you never did learn that, even when you did remember everything."

"What do you mean?" he asked, drawing his words out slowly.

"Just as it sounds, fool. Use your head for once. They must have done something that caused the humans to retaliate in the first place; otherwise there'd be no human in the world paying attention to them. And for protection, they happened to find you. Nice and convenient, eh?"

He frowned and dropped his gaze. His eyes instead met with the liquid brown that was Ren's, gazing up at him in trepidation and fear.

He sighed. "I knew."

"What?"

"I knew," he repeated, louder. Again, he stared into the spirit's yellow, inhuman eyes. "I knew they weren't telling me the whole truth, but I still wanted to help them."

"You're an idiot."

"I know. You always told me that." He paused here. "Yeah, that's what it feels like, if what you say is true." A smile flashed across his face, a moment of levity amongst the seriousness. "I must've been a handful, wasn't I?"

"Still are," came the morose reply.

They stayed in silence, letting it stretch in a comfortable weight around them. Why did he feel so at ease, even though he didn't know this potentially dangerous spirit? Perhaps he's telling the truth, then…

A shout shattered the stillness. An elderly voice, and a figure approaching at a slow hobble. "Hey there, Nushi-sama!"

"Kousetsu!" he exclaimed. "You shouldn't be here!" He got onto his feet and sprinted towards the elder, stopping just a few feet before reaching out and holding the demon's hands in his own. "The elderly shouldn't walk such long distances in such a hurry," he said with a soft smile, "you know that."

"Hoh! It'll be another millennium before you'll find this old man crippled and unable to move!" retorted Kousetsu, waving his cane around. The spirit looked up at Madara. "I see … so it's finally time?"

"What do you mean?"

A hand rested on his head, and for some reason, he felt his heart sting. "We always knew that a windfall like you would eventually have to leave."

"Kousetsu…"

"I'm sorry. We've been keeping secrets from you, and though we knew you were not of this land, we still decided to cage you here. I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "No, don't be. I stayed here of my own free will, although Igari might have had something to say about it had I tried to leave," he chuckled.

"There are many things… Things we've mislead you about, all for the sake of making you stay."

"And I forgive you," he insisted.

"I hate to cut the sobfest here," interrupted the giant, "but standing in the open and chatting about emotions isn't exactly high on my agenda."

Right after he said those words, though, two simultaneous shouts rang in his ears.

"Nushi-sama!"

He felt it, just as the words reached his ears. He looked up, and there was a giant shape – an amorphous blob would have been the best way to describe it – dropping down on them with great speed. Without thinking, he shoved Kousetsu as hard as he could and leaped out of the way himself.

He hit the ground rolling.

"That's it! I'm sick and tired of everyone interrupting everything!" bellowed Madara, and he slammed into the attacking demon, who practically rolled out of the way because he was only a head. An olive-green-skinned head with a head full of flowing white hair.

Pain shot through his head again. He knew this demon too, but from where? But then he saw the angry perpetual scowl on his face and he saw the rows of large, blunt teeth. His eyes picked out the bits of stains around the edge of his teeth.

Teeth. Teeth that were large, fixed in a jaw twice his size. A jaw that could easily fit around him.

He saw a flash of red and a whirl of black feathers and he shook his head to rid himself of the gruesome image.

Yes, he knew this demon, and, he thought with hackles raised, if he was correct, then this was the cause of all his problems.

Then there was a swoosh through the air, and he froze in place. Something pricked at his cheek. He put his hand to the stinging, and when he looked, it came away red.

A choking gasp came from behind him. Dread filled his body as he tried to wrench himself around. When he did, he couldn't help the cry that escaped from his mouth.

"Kousetsu!"

A brief smile was the only farewell before the old man disappeared, disintegrated into wisps of smoke and ash. A soft clatter and the arrow that had pierced his chest fell to the ground. Jerkily, he ordered his two legs forward, one step after another, and knelt, picking up the arrow.

He hissed and dropped it. It burned his hands.

But the markings, the dark black scribbles in thick brushstrokes on the paper, pierced by the shaft of wood, were definitely those of runes.

Tears still in his eyes, he scanned the area. He didn't have to search long, for there, at the edge of the woods bordering the clearing, was a man. It wasn't Natori, though. The most obvious difference would have been flowing black hair, tied behind him, and the fact that this person only had one eye.

Without knowing how or why, he felt hatred for the first time, and this dark feeling solidified and slipped into the air in the form of a name.

"Matoba."


	17. N: Day 11, A Hard Pill to Swallow

I'm afraid my previous fic writing experiences are leaking into this one... To be more precise, I can't stop hearing Izaya in fic!Matoba's lines. That's sooo weird...

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><p><strong>Chapter 17<strong>

"Hmm?" the baritone, smooth voice sliced through the thick tension with the crispness of ice, "looks like I got lucky and picked off the right one. The barrier's down."

"What did you do that for?" he yelled. He clenched his fist so tightly, he felt his nails dig into his palms.

"Oh? Look, another one," the man said. He suddenly froze, though. "Hm? **You****'****re**…?"

He ignored their conversation and plowed onwards. "The spirits here are just trying to live their life in peace. They didn't do anything wrong! Why are you killing them?" He ignored his lack of dignity or the utter absurdity of him accusing this of strangers. Never mind that the spirits weren't completely innocent – he'd known and turned a blind eye to their thieving, but they had to sustain themselves! – they were his friends and he knew that they did not deserve this fate.

Rather than yell back or stare incredulously, even, the exorcist named Matoba…

…started laughing.

A full-blown guffaw that worked its way from his chest and burst out from his lungs, judging from the way the man was shaking.

"What's so funny?"

"No, sorry, I should be more polite, shouldn't I?" After some effort, Matoba straightened, though still with a twitch to the corner of his lips. "But there's no better proof that you're Natsume than an idealistic, utterly naïve statement like that! That on top of the fact that the fool up there had identified you as the object of revenge."

He'd actually hoped that Matoba wasn't someone he'd ever met in the past, but it looked like he wasn't so lucky.

Matoba wasn't done yet, but this time, any traces slid off his face and all humor disappeared from his voice; the change was so quick that it was unsettling. "Useless thing. It couldn't even carry a simple order out fully. But then again, here you are, before me. So, this is your secret to getting along so well with them? Befriending them? I suppose it's no surprise you sided with the spirits rather than humans."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "There's no difference between spirits and humans. I get along with both of them the same way."

"Hah, a likely rationalization! Is that why you dropped your human form, then?"

Words couldn't work their way past his throat, but his expression must have spoken volumes.

"There's no use denying it. After all, you're appearing in all your quadruped glory, right here, in front of everyone." Matoba spread his arms out wide. He said, in words dripping with honey-coated sarcasm, "Perhaps I should feel honored that you deemed me worthy of showing your true form to, Natsume-**sama**." A mock bow.

Complete confusion. Utter nonsense. And yet, the man had spoken it with such conviction he couldn't help but give a quick glance down at himself.

Two legs, feet, hands, torso. They were all there, clothed. "What … are you talking about?"

The man narrowed his eyes. "A liar to the end? Or maybe you are merely delusional. That's quite some bluff, when you're standing practically naked in front of me."

"You're lying," he said, he denied.

Too much. Just what was happening? He needed time to process everything, and why did everything have to come up **now**?

"Lying? Me? I lie almost every day of my life, true, but this one time, you'll find me completely sincere."

He had to be lying. Snapped. The man's finally snapped. That was the only explanation for all this.

"I'm human. I'm on two legs. I have hands and feet and clothes. I don't know what the hell you're talking about, but if you're sincere, then I'll eat my own foot."

"Vehement about this, aren't we? Are you sure that's not just you denying the truth?"

An image came to his mind, from when he'd first awaken with no clue where he was and who he was. Brown claws had stretched before him, flexing in time with him clenching his fists, but at the next blink, the nails were fingers and the fur was replaced by skin.

"That … wasn't a hallucination?" he whispered. Or rather, which was the illusion and which was the truth?

"It's fine by me, either way," the man continued, his voice jerking him out of his thoughts, "Whatever identity crisis you suffer from is no concern of mine. I just have one request, given as an acquaintance and someone was interested in you."

"I'd rather refuse anything that comes from you," he snarled. He was nervous, confused, anxious, but he had to put on a brave front. There were others counting on him. He had to protect them.

"Don't say that," Matoba replied with a transparent smile. "No, really, don't, because normally I would have shot you through the heart the instant I laid my eyes on you. You know I have no lost love for demons and beasts alike. Think of this as a favor, from me to you, for being such an impressive job lying to everyone. Now, I'll ask only once.

"Where is the Yuujinchou?"

Yuu-…jinchou…? He tried to clamp down on any reaction by putting up his best poker face. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't be that way. A little bird has already told me about your precious book. There's no use denying this."

Even if he did know anything about it… "I wouldn't give it to you, even if my life depended on it," he said aloud. Even without his memories, this Matoba exuded malice.

"You can't claim I didn't ask nicely. It's not my fault I'm going to resort to brute force."

"Wha-" Before he could choke his words, out, a hand clamped around his neck and he found himself flipped onto his back. He clutched the offending vice grip around his windpipe, tried to pull it away, but the tightness did not let up. He coughed, choking air past his throat but failing to draw any back into his deprived lungs.

He scratched at the man's wrist – and this time he saw his own claws. Now wasn't the time to bother with the details, though. The sharper the better.

Blood flowed, but Matoba bore down on him as persistently as before.

The man leaned forward, and he saw sparks flitting before his eyes. "That's not a good idea, Natsume. Beast or not, I'm still stronger," he said slowly, "Now tell me, where did you hide the Yuujinchou?"

In lieu of a response, he snapped his jaws in fury.

"Where is it?" Impatience bled into his voice. But with oxygen being deprived from his brain, he couldn't even think of any coherent answer. Just as he felt his consciousness leaving him, the pressure disappeared with a yelp.

"Stupid…!"

Gasping for breath, he lay on his back. Deep breaths, one, two… He pushed off the ground, rolling himself around and splaying on his stomach. Craning his neck, he turned to see what was going on.

If it weren't for the severity of the situation, it actually would have been pretty hilarious.

There was Matoba, hopping on one leg and kicking vigorously on the other, and there, clutching for dear life, was little Ren, claws digging into the man's calf and tiny teeth sunk into its flesh. If he weren't such a "proper" man, the exorcist probably would have been cursing the world through all layers of hell.

With a particularly vigorous kick, the tanuki flew straight towards the ground, landing with an "oomph" and rolling a meter before halting.

With a slight limp, Matoba made his way to the Ren. He grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and lifted him off the ground, held him arm's length away at eye-level. He glared at him, still on the ground, trying to lift himself back onto his feet. "I see you've made some friends. Maybe some pressure on others will have more effect than direct pressure on you." With this, the man reached into his pocket and pulled out a knife.

"No! Stop!" he cried, leaping forward but only landing onto face first onto the ground as Matoba slid to the side.

"I never did understand why you cared so much for this trash, but seeing you know, I understand." The cold metal touched Ren's throat, eliciting a barely audible whimper from him. "To think, you were playing me for a fool this whole time," the exorcist ground out through grit teeth, anger marring his face. "And to think, I'd respected you even a smidgen…"

"If you have a grudge, then take it out on me."

"But then there would be no points, since you seem to be utterly immune to all harm directed towards yourself. This works much better."

And the man's arm tensed.

Ren's eyes closed.

He knew he wouldn't make it in time to wrench the boy out in time, but he had to try.

Before he could fling himself forward, though, he found himself flying backwards. Limbs tangled with each other. He waited for the world to stop spinning.

"You fool, what use are you if you can't protect Nushi-sama!" roared Igari, more furious than he'd ever seen him. Ren was caught in the boar's hands and the next moment he knew, the raccoon dog was flying straight towards him. He managed to catch him. Looking down, he saw that the kid had fainted.

"'Nushi-sama?'" echoed Matoba, who was still clutching his hand from where Igari had practically bitten. Red was splashed all over the limb, but it looked still intact. "Hah! Is that the game you've been playing here, Natsume?"

"Nushi-sama," said Igari, who had moved himself between the two, "We cannot have you fall here. Run!"

"I can't just leave you here!"

"Go!"

He hesitated. Ren's warm body was still resting against him. Torn between his two "subjects," he froze.

A smooth voice reached his ears. "What a joke." And his eyes saw a flash of steel.

And the next thing he knew, Igari leaned further and further to the right, and his massive body crashed to the ground, the tremors reaching where he knelt, still clutching Ren.

"You demons just don't know when to give up. You're like flies, swarming towards a lure." Matoba swung the knife towards him, blade still dripping with blood pointed towards him. "Have I convinced you that I'm a man of my word yet? Now, give me the Yuujinchou, if you don't want anyone else getting hurt."


	18. M: Day 11, Revelations

Longest chapter I've written in a long time. There's one or two more chapters left. It's been a good time, everyone!

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><p><strong>Chapter 18<strong>

He threw his body forward, practically relishing in the loud _thump_ and the impact the damn demon against his shoulder. The head flew far into the air, a cartwheel of hair. Madara leaped off the ground, intent on catching the bastard and making him pay.

For all that he was a head, he was agile. Claws flying, teeth gnashing, but in the end, it was only a replay of their previous encounter.

Frustrated, he released a blast of energy, but again the other demon dodged. "Will it kill you to stay still for one second?" he yelled.

He caught movement flitting in the corner of his eye. A paper doll.

Madara snorted. He scanned the ground below him and caught sight of the exorcist (with his very distinctive hat). The human was standing over a circle, making last-minute adjustments with all the fussing of a mother hen.

The head flew towards him again. This time, instead of aiming at the body (of the head), he twisted and grabbed at his flowing locks. With a cry of pain, the demon halted to an immediate stop the moment he felt the pull at his scalp.

Madara ignored him and sailed downwards. "I hope you're ready!"

Natori caught the dog spirit's eyes and nodded. Madara threw his cargo as hard as he could against the ground. Still moaning, the demon didn't even respond as blue-white light enveloped him.

Within a few seconds, he was gone with only his screams of fury echoing to nothing.

"Well, that's that," said Madara.

Natori, who was in the middle of a sigh of relief, snapped his head up to glare at the spirit. "Yes, and I suppose leaving me behind to deal with those two alone was all in a day's work too, was it?"

"Something like that."

"I'm just glad one of them flew off. Where's Natsume?"

The spirit opened his jaws to respond, but then froze. He had been so caught up in the action he hadn't been paying attention to his surroundings.

Counting Natori, there were two presences in the vicinity. Human presences, that is, and since Natsume didn't qualify for that category anymore, that left an extra person.

With that other demon being present, it only took one guess as to who that person was.

"Ahead! There! We have to hurry." With only those words, Madara shot forward, legs bringing him flying over the ground. Three shapes appeared beyond the sparse trees, and he arrived just in time to see the largest teeter and collapse to the earth. The words "Yuujinchou" reached his ears. He snarled. He hadn't expected the name of the accursed book to appear now, of all times, and from him, of all people. The asshole had probably squeezed it from some loose-lipped demon.

He skidded to a halt, placing himself between Matoba and Natsume.

"So the loyal dog arrives at last. Or should I say cat?" the exorcist said, finally taking his eyes (eye?) off his charge.

"I'd hate to be categorized as something so simple as that," retorted Madara. "Take another step closer, and that pretty head of yours will no longer be attached to your shoulders."

"Quite protective, aren't you? Tell me, are you waiting for his trust before you devour him whole, as you demons are wont to do?"

"With a sprig of parsley on the side," replied Madara. "What I do with the boy is none of your business. Leave."

Behind him, he felt footsteps and he knew it was Natori, dragging the shocked Natsume further back.

"And you think I'd listen to a beast? Trust me, I can take on one of you, even one as powerful as you," said Matoba, reaching into his pocket.

But what he was about to draw out, though, Madara never found out because at that moment a large whirlwind exploded next to the man. He shielded his face. When he lowered his arm again, there was not one demon in front of him, but three.

"About time you got here, stupid rocking horse."

"Madara, it seems you've attracted yourself quite a troublemaker here. Of all people, did you have to get **him **involved?"

Madara frowned. "It wasn't my fault. It's not like I called for him to show up."

"Yes, but knowing your luck, it was probably ultimately your fault."

Hinoe shoved herself in between them. "There, there, big babies. Stop quibbling like children. Look, he's already getting away."

Sure enough, Matoba was no longer standing in front of Madara. In fact, he was quite some distance away. "Coward," the dog spirit grumbled. "The moment he's outnumbered, he tucks his tail between his legs and runs."

"I shall make sure this stays that way," Misuzu said, lifting himself off the ground and jetting away in the exorcist's direction.

Watching her friend go, Hinoe hummed thoughtfully. "In this case, it may not be such a bad idea. You can't fault him for being brainless, at least."

Before she could fly away to join the chase, though, Madara stopped her. "Wait. I need you to see something."

"Oh? The great Madara needs my help?"

"It's about Natsume."

Hinoe's teasing smirk fell from her face. "What is it?"

"I think you'll have to see. You're the one good with spells." He turned and led the way. Back a ways, Natori was still holding the fox that was Natsume in his arms.

The exorcist looked up when they approached, Madara releasing a puff of pink smoke as he returned to his cat form. "Is he gone?"

"I wouldn't be back if he wasn't, fool. How is he?"

"Still holding the tanuki in a death grip. He won't answer me when I talk to him." He looked down with sad eyes.

"Hold him any tighter and **you'll** be the death of him," said the cat. "Natsume! Hey, Natsume! Snap out of it!" He lifted a paw to slap at the fox's face, but was interrupted by Hinoe behind him.

"Oh my, **that** is Natsume?"

He rotated his head around to see her. "Pickle, isn't it? Did you have any idea?"

"No, of course I didn't." The shock was evident on the woman's face. Madara wondered what was going through her mind, knowing that her favorite boy was actually a fox. "Natsume Reiko was human, so I just assumed…"

"Reiko … Natsume's grandmother?" asked the exorcist, slowly.

Hinoe narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the unfamiliar human, but Madara jumped in before she could throw a fit about being in such proximity of a male. "Hinoe, meet annoying stupid friend of Natsume. Natori, meet crazy obsessive stalker-lady of Natsume. OK, introductions over."

He felt slightly better (in this overall very rotten day) when both of them glared at him.

In a ladylike manner only she could have managed, Hinoe turned her nose up at him. "Hmph. Yes, Reiko was most definitely human. This, though…" She leaned forward, running a hand through Natsume's fur and up to one of his small ears. "This seems real," she said, playing a bit with its softness.

"Real. So it's not a spell?"

"No, Madara, I'm afraid not."

"You mean he was a fox this whole time? That's impossible! I've known him for—"

"And I've known him for longer, kid," cut in Madara. "There's always an explanation for these things." He wasn't as sure as he sounded, though. How could he not have noticed, if this had been his charge's true form all along? It was then he heard a soft groan.

"Natsume?"

"Natsume!"

Yellow eyes blinked blearily, and slit pupils dilated and contracted, adjusting to the light. "Natsume… That's me, isn't it?" he said, slowly.

"Do you remember anything?" prompted Natori.

"What happened?" groaned the boy. "Ugh, I feel like my head's been put through the wringer…" Suddenly, a gasp. "The exorcist! Igari! Where's Igari? What about Ren?"

"Hmph, worried about others before yourself, even without your memories? You never change."

Natsume turned and focused his attention on the cat sitting just a little ways away. "Where are they?" he insisted.

Madara sighed. "I don't know anyone with those names, but if you're talking about your friends, one's in your chokehold right there," Madara said as he gestured towards Natsume's chest.

The fox looked down. He registered his friend's presence, still warm and alive, and loosened his grip. "Ren, you're alive."

"Surprising you haven't strangled him to death."

"Cat! Now's not the time…"

"What about Igari?" interrupted Natsume.

"Igari?"

"The boar demon. The one who … who was stabbed just before…" He flinched. Whether it was from the pain of the memory or something else, Madara didn't know.

"Over there," he said, cocking his head in the other's direction. "There where the bastard left him."

"Igari!" With a cry, Natsume broke free from Natori's grip and stumbled to his feet. Haltingly, as though drunk, he slowly made his way to the fallen demon. Upon reaching the demon, he plopped himself down. The boar was still alive, it seemed, and he opened one eye slowly.

Madara was too far away to make out any words.

A ringing of bells chimed overhead, and once again Misuzu appeared before them.

"Happy hunting?" greeted the cat.

"Hmph, slippery as an eel, or a worm, that one. He escaped."

"You must be growing dull in your old age, Misuzu. A great demon like you can't catch a human?"

"I don't see you trying."

"All right, all right, pipe down, boys," Hinoe chimed in, dampening the sparks before they actually started a fire.

"Where is Natsume-dono?" asked the horse spirit. "I have yet to lay eyes on him and confirm his safety for myself."

"See? Blind."

"Quiet. I sense him in this vicinity, but I do not see him."

"Over there, Misuzu," waved Hinoe. "The fox, by the boar. That's Natsume."

Misuzu hummed thoughtfully. His pale eyes stayed on the small form exchanging quiet words with the boar demon.

"Speaking of which … Madara," said Hinoe.

"Mm?"

"You're much more like yourself with him back."

Madara frowned but made no comment. Had he really acted that differently from his usual self?

The question must have appeared on his face because Hinoe nodded. "You were a great old crab. I was honestly surprised the boy's foster parents hadn't sent their 'son' to a mental institution by the time you left, given how you were acting. They might've been less alarmed if you were more your overbearing self."

Misuzu finally emerged from his thoughts. "I see…"

"Well I did better than you would have!"

"Not that, fool. Hinoe, is the form natural?"

"As far as I can tell, yes. I don't sense any spells around him."

"Then the answer is easy. That is Natsume-dono's original self."

"That's impossible!" Natori insisted again. "I've felt him before. He has skin and hands, just like a human's. He has human parents. There's no conceivable way he's a fox."

One eye of Misuzu shifted down to stare at Natori's relatively small form. "And who may this be, Madara?"

"Friend of Natsume's," replied the spirit dismissively.

"Human, I find it amusing you do not consider the possibility that Natsume-dono has tricked you this whole time," said Misuzu. "After all, it is not unusual for a fox, especially one of Natsume-dono's power, to appear human and cloud even the strongest's senses."

Natori bit his lip and managed to look somewhat guilty. "The idea did occur to me, but he's not someone who could pull off such deceit. Judging from his reaction, it's almost as though…"

"…he didn't know," finished Madara. "When he didn't know about his true nature, he appeared human. The reason he's here as a fox would be because he's lost his memory, then."

"So … I'm really not human?"

All three spirits and one human froze and turned their heads towards the canine sitting between Madara and Misuzu, hidden behind their large figures. His head was turned downwards, and ears drooped forward in dejection.

It was Natori who first shook his head. "Natsume, I'm sorry."

The fox lifted his eyes and met the exorcist's dejectedly, but almost with a resigned air. He then turned and looked up at Madara. "Why do I look like this now? You said my memories were the key, but that doesn't make sense, not if I didn't know who I was in the first place."

Madara hummed a bit. "You didn't know you weren't human. Does that mean you still see yourself as one?"

"Until recently, with that person's words. Now I see fur and claws instead of hands and nails. The grounds a lot closer than I remember, too."

"Do you feel any differently?" asked Hinoe as she came up to Natsume. She set down her pipe as she kneeled down beside him.

Natsume shook his head. "It's weird. When I think 'run,' my legs automatically all move even though I just feel myself moving forward. I thought I'd get tripped up more. It all just … comes naturally."

"Your memory was lost, and along with it, your conviction that you were human," said Misuzu. "Natsume-dono, you conferred with the spirits and, with your mind as a relatively blank slate, you were no longer under the illusion cast upon you all your life."

"What illusion?"

"That you were human. In short, you thought you were human, and so that was what you saw. When that illusion was broken, you saw how you really are."

"I never sensed anything this whole time," lamented Madara. He shook his head. After all this time, all these revelations, this had to be the most shocking of all. Was he growing senile and blind in his old age of near-immortality?

"Because fox illusions are much more subtle than usual spells," said Hinoe, who was busy running her hand through Natsume's fur. The boy didn't seem to mind and was even starting to nudge back at the petting. "I doubt any one of us had a clue. Considering how illusion spells work, it's little wonder."

"'Belief is the key. All the spell needs is for you to believe who you are and what you are,'" murmured Natsume quietly.

"What was that?"

The boy looked up at Natori. "Something Ren told me. He taught me some tricks with illusions, and I played around with them, but I never for a second thought it was something I'd been doing my whole life. He just said I was a natural." Natsume buried his head in his paws. "How could I not have realized?"

"Well," started Madara, "you were born human, saw your parents were human, and just used logic. You believed yourself to be human, and then for all intents and purposes, you were."

"My parents? Were they…"

"Spirits? I never met them."

"Are they still alive…?"

Madara only shook his head.

Natsume visibly deflated.

The demon sighed. "For what it's worth, I believe the Fujiwaras are just as good as any."

"The Fujiwaras?"

Surprisingly, it was Natori who cut in. "They're distant relatives of your father. They adopted you when you came in hard times with your previous family."

The cat raised a suspicious eyebrow. "How, exactly, do you know this? More importantly, why?"

The human turned slightly red as he scratched his cheek. "It … was imperative I did research into someone I was planning to take as my apprentice."

"Stalker."

"Come again?"

Hinoe interrupted the two quarrelers. "That would mean Natsume's father is human. His mother is then Natsume Reiko's daughter…"

"…who would be the likely provider of Natsume's heritage," continued Misuzu. "I must say, I am not displeased at this turn of events. It comforts me some to leave my name in your care now."

"Name…?"

Madara coughed. "Enough of that. A little at a time. We should go home. Natsume needs rest." He shifted into his cat form and looked down when the fox didn't make a move. "What's wrong? Hop on. We'll go much faster this way. If you don't have opposable thumbs now, you can always compensate with your claws and teeth. I will allow it this once."

Natsume's ears were slightly laid back. The spirit supposed this would make identifying his emotions and intentions so much easier in the future. "Was what he said true?"

"…What who said?"

"The exorcist, that you'd eat me. You didn't deny it."

"I'm your body guard, Natsume. I'm here to make sure no one else lays their hands on you. We have a complicated relationship. Besides, you shouldn't give a damn about what that stupid worm tells you. He's the enemy."

"That's right, Natsume," said Natori, who came up to the fox and pulled him into his arms, shocking the boy. "I don't like the cat a whit, but even I have to agree. We're your allies, your friends. You can trust us."

There was a moment of silence, and then a whisper. "Yeah, I don't know why, but I feel like I can trust you guys too."

A soft nudge from the human to the fox. "Come on. Let's get on. I'll help you up."

Natsume shook his head. "No need." A small smile on fox lips, and then, the next moment Madara blinked. Instead of seeing a fox, there was a human again.

Natori's eyebrows were lost in his hairline. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that."

Misuzu chuckled. "So, you've managed to master the skill already! I am not surprised."

The boy looked down in embarrassment. "It's kind of strange. It doesn't feel like anything's changed, but I see things differently."

"Remember that an illusion is just that. Yours is just stronger because of your spiritual powers."

"…So basically, if I tried to bite someone, it would really, really hurt."

"Because you are biting them with fangs rather than blunt human teeth, yes."

Natsume scaled up Madara's thick white fur, grabbing bunches with his hands. "So, when I'm climbing, I'm just … somehow doing it as a fox, but it looks like I'm doing it as a human?"

The horse demon nodded.

Madara waited until the two slight weights on his back settled (not that he really cared about the exorcist) and shook slightly. "Ready?"

"Let's go home, Madara."

The dog flinched at his usage of the name. He heard some whispering behind him, somewhere along his shoulder blades, but he couldn't hear the words. He did catch a snort and a chuckle.

"I'm sorry. Let's go home, N- … Did I really call you this? Nyanko-sensei?"

Upon hearing the familiar name, Madara felt a twinge race through him, like a spark before a warm hearth fire. He threw his head back in a raucous guffaw unbecoming of one of his stature, but he didn't care.

"Yes, let's," he said as he kicked off into the air, the other two following closely behind.

He couldn't care less about appearances to the other two spirits, or to that human on his back. His Natsume was finally coming home, and he couldn't have felt any better.


	19. N: Day 11, Time to Go Home

Only the epilogue left.

Happy Halloween!

Please review? Here's a little incentive, maybe... Whose POV did you prefer, and why?

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><p><strong>Chapter 19<strong>

They called him Natsume. He had no other name, none other than "Nushi-sama," which the demons had called him for the brief time he had been with them.

The demons. He felt a pang in his chest when he thought about them. He didn't want to leave them, but they were at home here. Kousetsu had died protecting this land, and it was the least they could do to honor him, they'd said.

When he'd woken in the exorcist's arms, he'd been confused. Groggy. It'd been so long since he'd felt any such warmth – it was partially why he liked cuddling with Ren so much. The raccoon was the only source of warmth in the cold forest nights. Spirits didn't give off much heat.

But then, within minutes, he remembered. He remembered what had happened, and the events played over in his mind. The sight of the large beast falling, crashing to the ground in an effort to protect him.

"Igari!" he cried as he stumbled over his feet in his haste to reach the boar. He made sure to keep a tight grip on Ren. He tried not to think too hard about how he was doing it – whenever it did, he would start to see fur again, and the boy would no longer held to his chest but dangling in front of him. No, best to leave that for later.

When he found himself beside the demon – one who'd been harsh and cold to him, but had nevertheless protected him anyways – he practically collapsed. He felt a tingling in the corners of his eyes. "Igari, wake up," he whispered, almost whining in his anxiety. He couldn't bring himself to raise his voice. Tentatively, he reached out a hand (paw?) and pushed.

There was a whimper, but it didn't come from the mass in front of him. He looked down. "Ren? Are you awake? Are you all right?"

The tanuki shook his head vigorously, trying to shake the last vestiges of fatigue away. It didn't work very well; he still looked tipsy. "I'm fine, Nushi-sama. Is the exorcist gone?"

He nodded. "Yeah, friends came and drove him out."

At the mention of these friends, though, Ren's usual smile twisted into a frown. "Are those all your friends?" He asked, looking back behind him. There was a man, and a woman, and also two enormous demons beside them. They all talked, intense expressions of concentration plastered across their faces. He bet they were talking about him.

"I suppose so. I don't remember them, but they feel … familiar. Especially the white one." Madara, he'd been called? "Are you all right, Ren?"

Silently, the boy nodded.

"Is something bothering you?"

Ren shook his head, but paused in mid-shake. "No … yes. Yes. I'm … I'm sorry, Nushi-sama. We tricked you. We should have helped you go home, and in the end, it all came to this."

"No, no, it's not your fault. It's none of your faults. I chose this. I enjoyed my time here, and in the end … I learned more about myself." More than he ever really wanted to know, really, but that was all right. No true bliss came from staying in ignorance. "There's never been anything to forgive, for me."

Ren nodded, but kept his eyes on the ground.

Igari stirred, and he jumped forward. "Igari? Are you up?"

A loud groan. "Ugh, shut up. You're too loud; it's too early in the morning."

He practically broke down in laughter. "It's me. Are you all right?"

There was a slight pause, and the boar's eyes wandered as he remembered what'd happened. He snorted. He … Natsume assumed it was because he'd reached the point in time when he'd gotten stabbed. "What, this little pinprick? I would be a weak fool to allow that to bother me." It was almost like the groaning of the earth when the spirit sat up before shrinking down into his more familiar size. He narrowed his eyes at the sight of the other demons. "What are they doing here? Why are they in our territory?"

He hastily waved his hands, trying to stave off any impending boiling rage. "No, it's all right! I'm… There's something I have to say, Igari."

The boar's dark eyes shifted to him.

He bowed. "Thank you."

The other visibly startled.

"Thank you for saving me. And thank you for pushing me as hard as you did. I … suppose I was kind of bad as a Lord, wasn't I?"

"What brought this on, all of a sudden?"

"These people, they know me. They were my friends, and they know who I was. What I was. I want to learn more about myself; that's where I belong. I'm sorry I can't stay, but you never really needed me to begin with. I just attracted more trouble for you, in the end. In the end…" Here, he choked. "In the end, Kousetsu died. I couldn't protect you in the end."

It was Ren who replied, from behind him. "That's n-not… That's not your fault, Nushi-sama. It was all that exorcist's…"

Igari snorted. "No, he's right. It is his fault. He should go back to where he came from. We were better off without him."

"Igari-sama … please…"

"Go, we have no more need for you here."

To Ren's surprise, he smiled brilliantly, probably the lightest he's felt this whole time. "I probably won't ever see you again, but if you do need help, I think… Ask for 'Natsume.' You'll probably find me."

A tug on his leg, and he looked down. "Y-you're really … leaving?"

He nodded. "Don't worry. You'll still have the others with you. Kakuyuki should be fine, I think. I still sense her presence, and it feels like Rinne is in a coma. He probably just exhausted himself. You'll be fine." He ran his hand through Ren's fur, hoping to comfort the quivering ball.

"Let the boy go, Ren. He is no longer our Lord."

After a moment, and very reluctantly, the tanuki released his death grip around his ankles. He knelt down and swept the boy into his arms. "Thanks. You'll always be welcome." He held him tightly, but eventually, he had to put him down and stood. "I have to get going now." Turning, he made his way back to the posse of people that had come to pick him up.

"Nu-shi… Natsume!" shouted a shaky voice.

He turned.

"D-don't forget what I taught you… I'm sure it'll be helpful for you in the future."

He nodded.

"And … I'm sorry. We're sorry, for not helping you. For tricking you. We're not really all that good; we like to steal. We never told you."

"I knew."

Ren didn't seem too surprised, but the waterfalls from his eyes doubled. "Y-yeah, you probably did."

He tried to put on a comforting face, but he wasn't sure how successful he was. Ren looked miserable. It made him feel bad that he was the cause of that, but there was nothing to be done. He wanted to go back. He wanted to find out who he was. He was tired of being at the halfway point between knowing and not knowing.

He got what he wanted.

When he'd climbed onto Madara's back, he didn't know why, but it felt very comfortable. Comforting. Like it was something he'd always done. Perhaps they were telling the truth, and it was stupid to doubt them. When Natori whispered into his ear what he'd called the spirit beneath him before his memory loss, he practically snorted. Really? A name like that?

But then he could see himself doing it, especially if Madara stayed in his ball-shaped cat form. It was kind of … adorable, really. Cuddlable, if that were a word.

The wind blowing past his face was chilly, but the thrill of traveling, of galloping through the air was exhilarating. The scenery scrolling by, faster but smaller than he ever could have imagined. Somewhere along the way, the other two spirits, Misuzu and Hinoe their names were, bid their farewell and went their separate ways. Behind him, Natori clutched the fur for dear life and he found himself chuckling at the sight of the man so nervous.

"Natsume," came the deep growling voice.

"Yes, Nyanko-sensei?"

"…Stop saying my name on purpose like that. It's creepy."

"Sure thing, Nyanko-sensei."

The dog spirit growled. "With your memory gone, it'll be hard for you to adjust to your previous life. Will you be all right?"

He found his lips twitching at the thought of the big, gruff demon being so thoughtful. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Some of my memories are vague. They're there, but I can't quite grasp them. It's all right, though. After all, I have you with me, right?"

"Don't count on him so much," cut in Natori. "It was his failure as a bodyguard that got you into this whole mess in the first place."

"You. Shut it. You're the one on my back and a km into the air. If I flip, you're going down to the ground, mister."

"Natsume's on your back too!"

"He can hang on just fine. He's used to this stuff!"

Panicked he cried out, "No I'm not! Stop lying!" When he realized the words that had spilled from his mouth, he startled … and started laughing. It wasn't hysterical laughter, but one filled with gladness. Glad that he was heading back home, and where everything would be right again.


	20. N: Day 12, Epilogue

Thank you for reading all the way to the end! I'm really glad to actually be able to finish this fic. It was a blast to write =)

When I started writing this, I only had one thought. "Omg, Natsume looks like a fox when he returns the spirits' names!" That was the only impetus behind this fic, I swear. It kind of mutated, didn't it XD

I hope you enjoyed the wild ride! I hope I wrote everything well o_O

Please review with what you think! Thank you again! *huggles to all!*

* * *

><p><strong>Epilogue<strong>

Home was warm. He had parents. The Fujiwara couple had fussed over him, pulled him into their warm arms as a gracious welcome back. They'd stopped at a small field to pick up some bags that he guessed were his. The demons there swarmed him and greeted him with such cheer he couldn't help but feel his mood soar. Upon arrival at the front door, Natori charmed his way in and out, wishing them good health and apologizing for their late arrival (and lack of a phone call). Apparently the excuse Madara … Nyanko-sensei had used was that he'd gone on a hot springs trip with Natori for a week. The mother had been very worried. After all, "he" had only said he'd be gone for a week, and it was far past. Almost a week and a half. In the end, Natsume Takashi had had to pretend they'd gotten lost and ended up in a place much further than they'd expected.

When he sat down to eat dinner, with Nyanko-sensei under the table and ravenously scarfing down shrimp tempura like a wolverine, he felt warm inside.

"You look a lot better, Takashi-kun," said Touko-san.

He put a hand to his cheek, as though to test his skin's consistency. "What do you mean?"

"You were much too reserved before you left. The hot springs must have loosened you up," mused Shigeru-san.

"Oh … really?" Takashi asked curiously as he glanced down at the chubby cat. "I hadn't noticed. I'm sorry for worrying you."

"No, no, we're just happy you're healthy and hale again. Eat up, eat up!" said Touko-san as she placed some more vegetables into his plate. Takashi didn't complain. He only picked the green leaves up and placed them in his mouth.

He felt like it had been forever since he'd tasted something so delicious.

Back in his room, Takashi pounced on the cat and started kneading its head in a noogie. "So. You were 'very reserved,' were you?"

"What! That's how you usually are! It's not my fault you're spineless!" protested Nyanko-sensei as he wiggled back and forth, trying to gain purchase on anything with his short stubby paws.

"I wouldn't have thought it of you. You seemed like some grumpy miser when you picked me up."

"Hmph! That's only because you needed a shove out the door. Now let go!" The cat twisted and managed to slip from his grasp.

Takashi leaned back and stared at the ceiling. There was so much for him to sort through, but his mind was blank.

"Are you going to keep up that form?"

Broken out of his non-thoughts, he turned to face the spirit. "Hm?"

"You're not really human, and you know it. There's no reason to keep this up."

He turned back to the ceiling. "This was how I grew up. I'm more comfortable this way."

Nyanko-sensei didn't ask anything else that night, but instead opted to curl on top of Takashi's chest. For once, he didn't complain when he pet him, both quiet and simply enjoying the moment until it was time to sleep.

The next day, the cat dragged him out of bed at the rise of dawn.

"What's the big rush?" he grumbled. He still felt his eyelashes clumped together and pulled himself up and stumbled to the bathroom.

"You remember the Yuujinchou?"

"Yuujinchou … I have a vague recollection. No wait, don't tell me." Takashi racked his brain and, after a relatively short silence, managed to scrape together an answer. "The memento of my grandmother's."

Nyanko-sensei nodded appreciatively. "I left it with another acquaintance of yours for safekeeping. We should go see him first thing, to get it back."

"The thing's dangerous, right?"

"The sooner we get it back, the better."

Because of this, Takashi bid early leave of the house and, with a promise to call Touko-san when he reached his friend's house, set out to Tanuma's. He cut through Yatsuhara, bidding the demons from yesterday good morning along the way. They cheered back as Nyanko-sensei cursed them for being so rowdy.

The spirit guided him towards a shrine, hidden deep beyond the woods. He stopped at the gate. He felt the energy emanating from the grounds itself and marveled at how such an aura had been around the whole time and he'd never noticed. He couldn't stop his eyes from wandering over what was once familiar as he made his way up to the front door.

Before he could knock, the door clattered open before him and he found himself staring into black eyes.

"N-Natsume!" exclaimed the boy before he dropped the broom he'd been holding with a clatter. He must have been about to go out to clean the front yard. He rushed forward, and, just as he was about to run his hands over Takashi's face to check if he was real, he pulled himself back. "You're … you're really back. Thank goodness…"

"Yeah, I'm back, Tanuma," he said. "Sorry for making you worry."

"I couldn't do anything for you… Sorry…"

"Well, you're a powerless human, so you should learn your place." Both boys glared downwards at the spirit who was attempting to groom himself. "What? I'm only stating the truth."

Tanuma frowned, and Takashi didn't like the spirit's words either. They shared a glance and, with an almost imperceptible nod, both pounced on the unsuspecting cat.

"Agh! What do you think you're doing! You'll pay for this!"

The words rang in his ears, but he ignored the slightly pained eardrums as he jumped to his feet and took after the escaping cat with a vengeance and with Tanuma closely following. Both were grinning gleefully as they hunted down their "victim."

In the end, Takashi completely forgot about calling Touko-san when he finally entered the house and stayed until sunset, succeeding in earning another (mild) scolding from her, complete with Shigeru-san nodding and agreeing with every word in the background.

There were many things to sort out and many more things to remember in order to pick his life up again, but things were going all right. He was slowly remembering just from returning to his previous life, and he found he had a home here, and he had friends. He was happy.

Nothing lasted forever, but he would relish this for as long as he lived. That was his only wish.


End file.
